Less Than a Hero, More Than a Gamer
by TeamDimension8
Summary: AU "Nothing personal, man." The boy said looking down at his deceased target. He weakly swatted away a glowing silver quest panel and pulled out his scroll. "All done, bossman. I'll back in a bit. Make sure the others save me some takeou-And he hung up. Great..." The story of a sardonic boy in a foreign land. *Rewrite of A Huntsman's Game*
1. Chapter 1: A Second Chance

**Less Than a Hero, More Than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 1**

* * *

It was a chilly fall night. The usually busy streets were quiet and a thin layer of snow covered the ground. Naturally not many people were out to avoid the risk of catching a cold or freezing. But a few people decided to stay out in the bitter cold, either because they were desperate, lost, or just plain stupid.

One of these people was a teenage boy standing in front of a bus station. He wore black hiking boots and a thick blue hoodie, which expertly covered the mop of brown hair on his head.

Now one would think a teenage boy wouldn't spend less than a minute outside in the cold, especially if they were literally in front of a relatively warm building. But there was an arguably valid reason that the boy was outside.

' _I'd rather freeze than listen to that garbage for another second,_ ' the boy thought sourly. Everything was going fine until the speakers blasted out generic tween pop music. The boy didn't last a minute before storming out of the building.

It was a petty and illogical reason to submit oneself to the bitter cold, but in the boy's mind, there weren't any other options other than telling the operator to change the station.

But the boy knew he had to lie low so a stunt like that would be a seriously bad idea. So he waited for nearly an hour until the bus pulled up

The boy waited for everyone else in the bus station to get on before boarding. He handed the bus driver his money and sat down. There were only about a dozen people on the bus aside from him, leaving many empty seats.

The boy sat close to the door just in case something happened. Normally he would've sat somewhere near the back, but he felt…uneasy for some reason, like something big was gonna happen.

As time went on, the boy's breath became labored and erratic. He shivered in his seat despite the bus being fairly warm and there was a pounding feeling in his chest, similar to a heartbeat but different.

Slowly the pounding grew stronger, and stronger, and stronger until everything just...stopped

For some inexplicable reason, everything suddenly ground to a halt. It was like the universe hit the pause button on everything…everything except for the boy.

"What the fuck…" The boy muttered. He was finally dozing off when suddenly he felt the bus stop. He got out of his seat thinking they had arrived at their destination but instantly felt that something was off.

The bus was still on the freeway but wasn't moving an inch. Neither were any other cars. The boy also saw a flock of birds high in the sky frozen mid-flap. The boy looked at his fellow passengers out of curiosity.

They too were frozen, he couldn't even see them breathe!

' _Is this some kind of dream…or maybe a nightmare? This is way too freaky to be real._ '

 **DEPENDS ON YOUR DEFINITION OF FREAKY, KID**

"What the-!" A loud voice traveled throughout the bus, startling the boy. He looked around to see if anyone had unfrozen to no avail, they were still living statues.

"Yep, definitely a dream." Why else would he be hearing voices while the entire world was on pause?

 **AFRAID NOT BUD, EVERYTHING YOU'RE SEEING RIGHT NOW IS REAL.**

"Sure, sure, it's totally natural for the world to freeze up for no reason," the boy rolled his eyes, "Cut the crap already and go away, I'm not in the mood to hear any disembodied voices today."

 **YOU ARE A VERY RUDE KID YOU KNOW.**

Whoosh*

The boy felt a cold, bitter wind push him back until he bumped into something. He turned around to see what he crashed into but was faced with a blue cloud of smoke.

Then the boy felt a cold hand place itself on his shoulder and spin him around. Another cloud of smoke, but for a fraction of a second, the boy saw what appeared to be a glowing shoulder.

A light tap on his back. The boy swung his fist trying to hit…whatever was messing with him but, yet again, only saw a cloud of smoke.

 **STILL THINK I'M NOT REAL?**

Before the boy could retort a bright light caused him to shield his eyes. Once it faded the boy looked up to see a glowing fist sailing toward him. He tried to smack it away, but it turned into smoke right before it connected.

 **DO I HAVE YOUR ATTENTION NOW, BOY?**

The boy hesitated for a moment before nodding. It would be smart to humor the voice for now and let the dream run its course.

 **GOOD. NOT THAT YOU'VE DECIDED LISTENING TO REASON, I THINK IT'S HIGH TIME WE DISCUSS YOUR FATE.**

"My...fate?"

 **YES, YOUR FATE. YOU SEE FATE IS WHAT-**

"I know what fate is, jackass."

 **SO YOU AREN'T COMPLETELY BRAINLESS. IM GLAD TO HEAR YOU AREN'T LIKE YOUR MONKEY ANCESTORS, SERIOUSLY THOSE GUYS WERE DUMB. DID YOU KNOW THAT-**

"Can you quit yapping about monkeys already! Didn't you come here to talk about my fate or some crap?"

 **OH YEAH…THAT. WELL LOOKING AT ALL THE FACTS, IT'S SAFE TO SAY THAT YOU HAVE A PRETTY BAD FATE IN STORE FOR YOU.**

' _Tell me something I don't know._ ' He knew he would run out of places to run, eventually. Eventually, _they_ would catch up with him and it would be game over.

 **YOU LIVE A SAD, FE** **E** **BLE EXISTENCE, RUNNING LIKE A COWARD. AND THIS COWARDICE WILL BE YOUR UNDOING**

"What about it?"

 **WHAT IF I WERE TO SAY THERE IS A WAY TO ESCAPE YOUR FATE, TO START ANEW WITH A CLEAN SLATE**

"I would say that you were an idiot." the boy had already thought of ways to start a new life. Hell, he even debated the pros and cons of moving to Mexico not too long ago. But every idea he came up with was either impossible or stupid.

 **OH, THERE IS A WAY, I PROMISE. BUT IT WILL REQUIRE YOU TO GIVE UP YOUR CURRENT LIFE IN EXCHANGE FOR ANOTHER**

"Wait are you…Oh, hell no! I'm desperate, but not desperate enough to off myself!"

 **IT WOULD BE TROUBLING IF YOU WERE THAT DESPERATE. I DO NOT MEAN FOR YOU TO COMMIT SOMETHING AS…TRIVAL AS SUICIDE, BUT TO ACCEPT SOMETHING GREATER THAN YOURSELF**

"What-"

 **I HAVE AN OFFER FOR YOU, BUT THIS ISN'T THE TIME OR PLACE FOR IT. I'LL GET IN TOUCH WITH YOU LATER, ADIOS!**

The world unfroze the moment the voice left. The bus resumed its journey along the freeway, the people moved and chatted as if they weren't just frozen in time. Everything was at peace once again…well, almost everything.

The boy stood in the middle of the bus with an empty stare.

"It was real…"

"Hey kid, Sit back down!" the bus driver barked at the teen who quickly complied still in a daze.

The boy had concluded his ride about an hour ago and was currently walking through a small town with his brow wrinkled in distress. He was still thinking about the voice, or more specifically its offer

' _Another life…a clean slate. Ha! I wish…_ ' He would be lying If he said he wasn't tempted by the voice's offer. A clean slate would be nice, but the boy had no reason to trust the voice.

' _Maybe I'm just going crazy…_ ' the boy tried to convince himself, but his gut told him otherwise. Time had actually stopped or at least had been slowed down. It honestly hurt to think about.

It had taken a few seconds for the bus driver to notice he was out of his seat, meaning that no time (or at least very little time) had passed during his talk with the voice, even though roughly a minute had passed during his talk with the supernatural being.

BaDum*

The boy hissed as the intense pounding in his chest returned, albeit weaker than before.

"Maybe I'm just hungry," he hoped. He pulled out his (stolen) phone to look for a decent restaurant.

Luckily there was a motel nearby that was next to a well-rated pizzeria. The boy immediately ordered a room, using what meager funds he had to reserve it for a night.

He bolted to the bathroom to wash up once he got inside. He threw off his jacket, unobscuring his face. The boy looked into the mirror, seeing a pair of slanted gray eyes staring back at him. Dark bags covered his face, betraying the boy's lack of sleep.

After showering the boy flopped on his bed and tried to fall asleep to no avail. Groaning he turned on the old TV in his room, trying to be interested in what was on the screen….he lasted three minutes before shutting it off

"*Groan* This is gonna be a long night…"

PING*

The boy heard a message tone come from "his" phone but didn't look at it. The message definitely wasn't mean for him, so there was no point in doing so.

PING*

PING*

PING*

PING*

'Whoever is texting this guy really needs to chill.' The boy quickly shut the phone off and laid back down.

PING*

"What the fuck?" The boy snatched "his" phone off the shelf.

 _From Unknown: Thinkin' about my offer_

 _From Unknown: Kid?_

 _From Unknown: Kiiiidd?_

 _From Unknown: KID!?_

 _From Unknown: It's rude to ignore someone, ya know_

 _From Unknown: Dick move kid_

 _From JEiCEON: That offer of yours…what's the catch?_

 _From Unknown: So now you decide to answer…too ya long enough_

 _From JEiCEON: What. Is. The. Catch?_

 _From Unknown: Before I answer that, can I ask you something_

 _From JEiCEON: Shoot_

 _From Unknown: Have you ever heard of a place named Remnant_

 _From JEiCEON: No, should I?_

 _From Unknown: The opposite actually, It would be a little less entertaining if you did._

 _From Unknown: As for the catch…well the place I'm sending you isn't particularly safe…but then again neither is your world._

 _From Unknown: The difference is that you have to potential to fight back in that world_

 _From Unknown: So…Do you accept_

 _From JEiCEON: …_

 _From JEiCEON: …_

 _From JEiCEON: …Yes_

 _From Unknown: Very well, the deal has been sealed. See you in a bit kid._

 **I APOLOGIZE FOR THE PAIN BUT DO NOT WORRY, IT WILL BE OVER IN A MINUTE.**

"What does that me-Urgh!" the boy was interrupted by an invisible force knocking the air out of his lungs. The dull aching in his chest blossomed into mind-numbing pain as if a spike were slowly being driven into his heart. He rolled off the bed and doubled over wheezing, making strangled gasps for help.

 **TWO LIVING BODIES CANNOT POSSESS THE SAME SOUL, AND I CANNOT SIMPLY PULL YOUR SOUL OUT OF YOUR CURRENT BODY INTO YOUR NEXT ONE.**

The boy barely registered the higher being's words, pleading for someone, anyone to come help. But no one heard him. He tried to balance on his arms to crawl to the door but felt his left arm go numb before he could get even an inch off the floor. The boy's vision darkened and his mind was slipping away. But with the last remaining spark of will in his body, the boy slowly inched himself to the door.

 **DO NOT FRET OVER YOUR APPEARANCE. IT WILL STAY SIMILAR TO YOUR CURRENT FORM, BUT DO NOT BE TO SURPRISED AT ANY** **…** **ALTERATIONS.**

It was so close! Less than a foot away. He reached out with his free hand, just a little further! But the moment he felt his fingertips graze the wood his body went slack, and with one final gasp, the boy died.

The police would arrive the next morning but would find nothing but a decaying corpse with a chillingly serene face.

* * *

Groan* The boy woke with a foggy head and an empty stomach. He was in an alleyway laid up against a wall next to a small dusty mirror. He grabbed the object and stood up, having trouble balancing. Curious, the boy looked into the mirror and almost dropped it immediately.

His face was the same, same skin tone, same eyes, a small mole on his cheek. But his messy brown hair was now a pale silver, and a pair of wolf ears jutted out of his skull. The boy felt something attached to the end of his spine, a furry tail matching his (now silver) hair.

"W-what the hell!?"

 **[Welcome to The Game Maxwell Argentum]**


	2. Chapter 2: Max Argentum

**Less Than a Hero, More Than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 2**

* * *

Max stared at the blue panel with a mixture of confusion and irritation.

 **[Welcome to the Game Max** **well** **Argentum]**

Max tried to inch away from the floating text, but it just moved along with his body, much to his frustration. No matter how much he looked away, how much he turned his body the panel always stayed in front of his face. Even when he closed his eyes he could see the stupid thing. It was very annoying.

Max tried to swat the panel away, but his hand only passed through. The panel became distorted for a second before reforming, this time with a different set of text.

 **[I understand that you have more than a few questions, and I guarantee that I will answer none of them…probably]**

Max's eyes narrowed as the words echoed in his head, it was that crazy voice…god…thing.

' _What the hell is going on!? One second I'm in my room, next I'm sitting in an alley with some damn furry ears on my head.'_

 **[Well considering you're finally conscious and surely confused, Welcome to** **your new home** **! A** **wonderful world** **of superpowers, magic,** **color coordination,** **and giant creatures of darkness.]**

Max's ears unknowingly shot up. _'Where the hell did you send me you stupid voice?!'_ He thought, assuming from their last interaction that the voice could hear his thoughts. He swatted the panel once more, hoping for a decent answer.

 **[** **Why this is the wonderful World of Remnant** **.** **And don't you worry too much,** **In this life you have the makings of someone who** _ **isn't**_ **a** **weak sack of meat and hormones like you used to be** **.** **Who knows, maybe you'll become a…nevermind I shouldn't say.** **]**

' _Shouldn't say what? Can you just give me a normal, not confusing answer!'_ Max could tell that the voice/thing was doing whatever it could to annoy him, and it was succeeding.

 **[Cultivate your strength, become worthy of the answers you so want. Only then will I tell you. But, I recommend saying Menu before you try. And by recommend I mean order. Buh-bye!]**

And with that, the panel closed. Max glared at the empty space in front of him and palmed his face. The stupid voice/thing could've at least given him a hint on what to do. Suddenly an odd buzzing sensation filled his head. The feeling persisted until another blue panel fazed into existence in front of him.

 **[Open the Menu, its voice activated]**

"Fine, fine, I'll open the stupid thing. _Fuckin asswipe._ " Max mumbled he reluctantly complied, fully expecting the menu to be some cryptic, nauseating slew of words. Luckily for him all that popped up was a basic drop-down menu.

* * *

 **[Menu]**

 **[Stats]**

 **[Skills]**

 **[Inventory]**

 **[Gear]**

 **[Settings]**

 **Version 2.5.7**

* * *

'This is all sorts of crazy.'

 **[Status]**

 **[Maxwell Argentum Lv2: 0/100]**

' _Dick didn't even bother getting my name right.'_

 **[Health: 130/130 | Stamina: 200/200 | LOCKED]**

 **[Race: Faunus/Wolf]**

 **[** **Stats] [** **Strength: 6 | Vitality: 7 | Constitution: 5 | Agility: 8 | Dexterity: 6 | Spirit:LOCKED]**

 **[Condition:** **Hungry** **]**

* * *

Max quickly went from annoyed to confused. He guessed the…extra appendages made him a faunus, and he certainly knew what "condition" meant, but he couldn't make heads or tails of his "stats". They sounded simple enough, but Max could feel that there was something…more to them.

Max was too lost in thought to notice the presence creeping up from behind him

A fist crashed into the side of Max's head sending him back into a wall. He stumbled for a second and turned around only to feel a blade press itself into his neck barely hard enough to draw blood. A grizzly man with bush-like hair stood in front of him with bloodshot eyes and rancid breath.

"Now, now ya damn animal, make this easier on the both of us and hand over the cash." the man hissed in Max's ear.

The teen's eyes narrowed once he processed the man's threat. His hand slowly inched toward his pocket, seemingly complying with the mugger's command.

"That's right, just hand over the cash and I won't have to cut y-." The thief was interrupted by a hard knee to the chest, causing him to kneel over followed an elbow crashing into the bridge of his nose, forcing him to drop his weapon.

 **[** **Vern Evergreen** **: Health** **9** **4/110]**

Max, wiping his bloodied knuckles, picked up the dropped knife and charged toward the bleeding man in front of him.

"You sonofabitch!" the man snarled, clutching his bleeding nose, "You'll be less than mincemeat when I'm done with you!"

The mugger saw Max holding his knife with a dangerous look in his eye and cursed. He pulled a pistol from his jacket and aimed at the silver-haired boy, causing him to stop in his tracks.

"L-listen, just hand over the cash and I won't have to shoot you!" The man panicked, his gun shaking in his hands. The boy decided to take a risk and threw the knife at the mugger causing the man to flinch and close his eyes

Max, seizing an opportunity, forced the man to release his hold on the gun and kicked him into a wall, causing spit to fly out of the thief's mouth. The man cursed and tried to get back on his feet but was knocked out cold by a well-placed kick to the chin.

 **[** **Vern Evergreen** **: Health** **4** **9/110** **(Unconscious)** **]**

Max let out a sigh of relief and leaned against the wall allowing his blood to cool. A sharp wave of cold hit him once the adrenaline wore off. It made him wonder why his new body wasn't wearing a jacket.

Shivering slightly, Max eyed the thick black jacket the thief was wearing. Max considered taking the man's jacket. The man _did_ threaten him at gunpoint, surely he deserved to freeze.

' _Speaking of which…'_ Max eyed the man's weapons before slipping them into his pockets. They would come in handy next time something like this happened.

"Hey! Is anyone down there!?" There was a figure standing on the other side of the alley with a glowing police badge and a flashlight in his hand.

The boy's ears shot up in panic _'Damn! Someone must have heard_ _us fighting!_ _'_

Max rushed over to the man and practically ripped the jacket off his body. In mere moments the wolf-eared boy was racing down the alleyway ignoring the yells of the officer behind him.

Max turned right and ducked behind a dumpster, using the darkness to his advantage. The hard footsteps of his pursuer faded allowing Max to steady his breathing. Slipping away with practiced ease, the boy walked casually in the opposite direction, dissolving into the sea of people.

A police siren blared down the street, but Max remained calm and mimicked the confusion of those next to him.

Once the cruiser passed, Max pulled his hood up and walked away from the commotion, trying to get out of sight as fast as possible.

Several minutes passed by. Max saw the cops retrieve his would-be mugger. He peeked around the corner to see the man making exaggerated hand motions to the officers. He must have been trying to fast talk the police into letting him go.

' _I'd like to see that asshole try to explain the whole 'trying to mug m_ _e'_ _part.'_ the silver-haired boy mocked in his head.

The taller officer shook his head and moved the man into the backseat. Siren's blaring the cruiser sped off. The red and blue light hit Max's eyes causing him to turn back around the corner in an effort not to be seen.

Once the cruiser was well out of sight and the murmurs ceased, Max dusted himself off and walked away, barely recoiling when a blue screen popped into his vision.

* * *

 **[Achievement Gained (Thief Path): Hit and Run-Escape police pursuit once.]**

 **[Gained: 72** **0** **Lien | Winter Jacket(Black)(Common) | Carving Knife(Melee)(Common) | GLOCK 19(Ranged)(Common) | Model 2 Scroll(Common)]**

* * *

Despite questioning what a lien was or when he picked up a scroll, his fatigue caused him to push aside the screen in favor of searching for somewhere to sleep.

*GRUMBLE*

Max pace sped up suddenly and his eyes frantically searched the street. He was hungry, starving even. It didn't matter if he was broke or not. His only thoughts were of food and how to get it.

Max broke into a full sprint when he saw a convenience store, weirding out several people. It didn't matter how tired he was or why he was so tired, he needed to eat something and fast!

Practically kicking the door open, the hungry wolf saw an assortment of chips, snack cakes, and junk food ripe for the taking.

Max's darker thoughts tempted him to just knock out the cashier and eat everything in sight, but he couldn't risk another run-in with the police. He prepared to put a bag or two into his jacket but saw the labels.

 **3** **2** **Lien**

Max, slightly relieved, set his face back into a cold mask. The boy snatched two large bags of chips off the counter and presented them to the cashier.

"That will be 64 lien." The cashier said in a practiced cheerful tone. Max dug into his pockets and gave the man what he thought was 70 lien.

"Thank you sir, and here's your…" The cashier trailed off to see Max greedily stuffing his face.

The bag was empty in less than thirty seconds…

Max paused mid-bite so stare awkwardly at the man. Grabbing his change he silently walked out the door, eagerly digging into his second bag at a much slower pace.

Dropping his now emptied bag Max settled for looking around admiring the many buildings of…wherever he was. They were almost the same as in his world, but so much different as well.

'My World.' Max thought in disbelief.

The boy was still reeling from his transport to Remnant. The fact that almost everyone's hair was some shade of the color wheel, the Menu, his ears and tail, none of it made sense.

 **TWO LIVING BODIES CANNOT POSSESS THE SAME SOUL, AND I CANNOT SIMPLY PULL YOUR SOUL OUT OF YOUR CURRENT BODY INTO YOUR NEXT ONE.**

 _'My next body. The voice said that he couldn't pull my soul into my next body. And he mentioned taking me this...remnant place on the phone.'_

Max looked up at the shattered moon, the pieces coming into place in his mind.

 _'So the voice basically killed me, yanked my soul here, wherever 'here' is, and made me a new body...no wait, he said this body was alive...or did he?'_

Max shook that last thought away. It wasn't important right now. He was on another planet in another body that had silver hair and was apparently a wolf faunus…if his hunch was right. If this was for real, if he wasn't having some kind of fever dream, then "Max" or at least his old body on earth was dead.

That meant he was a completely different person how, a different past, a perfectly clean slate to his knowledge.

Max didn't notice that he started to grin. A very small, very reserved grin, almost invisible, but a grin all the same. He chuckled with glee. The restrictions, the identity, the trauma of his old life didn't matter because the old Max was dead.

Max's face set back into a calm facade once someone walked past, not knowing where that little outburst of emotion came from. And he had no intention of letting anyone see it.

' _What the hell was that just now.'_ Max never would've allowed his mask to slip like that. And even then it wasn't so…intense.

Max's thoughts turned darker. _'I finally have a clean slate, a new life. I should be jumping for joy and shit, right? But somehow I don't feel very different. The hell am I supposed to do now?_ _'_

The silver-haired boy shook the thoughts from his head and looked over a fire escape. It seemed that he would have to sleep on the roof considering his lack of money.

Getting a running start, Max ran on the side of the wall and scarcely grabbed onto the ladder. It didn't surrender under his weight, an unusual occurrence for him, but he jotted it down to the locking mechanism, which was far more advanced than the so-called locks on earth.

Setting himself near a warm vent on the roof, Max stared upward to the sky, the many stars, and the shattered moon both new sights to him. Anywhere away from the countryside on earth, stars were a rare sight, especially in the larger cities. Yet in this massive city, the sky was crystal clear.

Allowing his eyes to grow heavy, the boy drifted off into a dreamless sleep, the first peaceful one in years for him.

* * *

 _ **Maxy**_ _ **Chibi ep1**_

 _Max was literally inhaling everything edible on the shelves. Hundreds of bags flew into his mouth, his stomach a bottomless pit eager to be filled._

 _Nothing was safe from his hunger. Even paper plates and bottles were sucked in, But Max couldn't care less._

" _Umm, sir you need to pay for tha-aaaaaaaaaa!" The man at the counter began, but Max turned his comically oversized mouth toward him._

" _Nooooooooo! I was 43 years from retiremeeeeeeenn-" the man was sucked inside the ravenous teen's mouth, never to be heard from again._

 _15 minutes later_

 _Max's face was blank as he fell asleep having devoured everything that wasn't nailed down in the store. His stomach swelled to the size of a semi._

 _Max cheeks, normal sized compared to_ _the rest of_ _his body_ _,_ _bulged out. A brown shoe and a cheap watch came out with a burp._

 _The police outside were so confused._

" _So…do we need an ambulance, a huntsman, or a crane?"_

" _Just get all three," the man sighed, "I'm too tired for this shit."_


	3. Chapter 3: The World of Remnant

**Less Than a Hero, More Than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 3**

* * *

Max slowly opened his eyes and sat up with a groan, shielding his eyes from the sun's early glare. He yawned and dusted some loose rocks off his back. Apparently he had fell asleep on a rooftop again.

 _'Wait a minute…how the hell did I get on a rooftop?'_ The last thing he remembered was getting on the bus, then everything started getting…hazy.

 _'Alright Max, think!'_ he told himself, _'I got on the bus, then that weird voice popped in my head, and then…'_ everything was coming back to him. The hotel, the voice's offer, waking up in an alleyway, and…

Max pulled down his bangs. They were silver, definitely silver. He rubbed the top of his head, feeling a canine set of ears. There was something attached to the back of his spine, a tail Max presumed.

 _'So that means…'_ The boy looked over the horizon. Ivory skyscrapers and hovering rails loomed over the skyline. The air shifted as a strange airship flew over his head.

 _'Is this some kinda dream?'_ Max pondered before a glowing blue panel appeared in front of him.

 **[Quests Received-Please Check Menu]**

The boy's hand tentatively went for the glowing text…

 ***GROWL***

…Until an angry call from his stomach snapped him back to reality.

He waved away the blue panel. Whatever it was could wait, it would be smarter to get some food before he did anything else. No point in doing any "quests" if he was too hungry to walk.

* * *

It took ten minutes for Max to find a half-decent restaurant, and another ten minutes to find one that didn't kick him out.

The boy sat down at the barstools in front and ordered a medium breakfast.

"I'll be back with your order in a few young man."

Max nodded at the waitress before staring at the TV hung above the counter in interest.

" _And that's it for the weather_ _,_ _back to you Lisa."_

" _Thank you, Cyril. At 8:34 last night, a man named Vern Evergreen was assaulted_ _and robbed of all his valuables_ _. Police spotted a faunus fleeing the scene with the victim's jacket, money, and scroll."_

"What the hell…" Max whispered, a pit forming in his stomach.

" _The suspect, unfortunately, eluded the authorities. The victim has confirmed that the suspect is armed and dangerous and was described wearing a white Grimm mask, the trademark accessory of the recently aggressive White Fang."_

Max heard a plate being set on the counter in front of him, but paid it no mind.

" _With the rapid rise of crime in the last 4 months along and terrorism at an all-time high, one question rests in everyone's minds. Is this wave of crime a sign of the downfall of Vale? More at eleven."_

The boy heard an angry grunt next to him.

"Damn animals" a middle-aged man muttered, "Need to learn their goddamn place." Max felt a pang of _something_ in his chest, but ignored it and looked away from the man.

The hooded boy dived into his breakfast. His eyes were cold as he looked at the TV. He subconsciously tapped his foot and suppressed a scowl.

' _Those stupid bastards_ _!_ _That green fucker tried to_ _ **kill**_ _me, but he sure as hell forgot that little detail! I bet the cops didn't even bother asking how he got in that alley in the first place!_ _'_

Max eyed the TV which showed a report of a protest turned violent. _'What the hell is the White Fang?'_ _._ He knew that they were faunus like him but nothing else, aside from the whole terrorism thing. Terrorists, monsters, and "Creatures of Darkness", more problems to add to the list.

Another showing of Vern's story came on the news. Max's eye twitched.

The boy hurriedly gulped down his juice and left, throwing some lien on the counter. He couldn't stand looking at that green-haired loser any longer.

 _'I really don't know jack shit about this world, do I? At least on earth I knew the basics, how to get around and shit. But here? I might as well be an alien.'_

 **[Quests Received-Please Check Menu]**

 _'You know what, fuck it. It's not like I have anything else to do.'_

* * *

 **[Main Quest: New world I]**

 **[Primary Objective 1: Find information about the history of Remnant [Incomplete] | Secondary Objective 2: Find and Kill a "Creature of Darkness"[Incomplete] ]**

 **[ Primary Reward 1: 100 exp, 1500 Lien | Primary Reward 2: 50 exp, 550 Lien, Rank 1 Weapon materials ]**

* * *

' _Gee, thanks menu...thing, I totally wasn't already going to do that…somehow.'_ Time for some information hunting.

' _I could try to swipe some from the library, but the security might get suspicious, and I'd have to have some identity to get a card…which I don't.'_

Max asked a passerby with a tight exaggerated smile and a very forced polite tone, "Excuse me, good sir," he gagged on the inside, "Are there any bookstores around here? I need some books for school but I couldn't find them at the library."

"Oh, there's one a few blocks that way. Just keep going straight and turn right when you see the coffee shop." The man responded with a friendly smile.

"Thank you, sir." _'Fucking tool.'_

* * *

 ***Jingle***

' _This must be the place.'_ Max looked around stunned at the sheer number of books lining the shelves. The Blue wallpaper and carpet nearly blended together, the soft smell of Jasmine hung in the air, and shelves covered each of the walls.

Scanning his eyes over the expanse of nonfiction, Max held a thick book titled The World of Remnant: Complete Edition. The boy also picked up a book with beast-like faces, a book with several weapons on the front, and a few random comics on his way to the counter before paying.

Finding a slightly secluded section of the park, Max cracked open his more important purchases. Before he knew it hours had passed and he hadn't moved an inch from his seat.

Dust, Huntsmen, the Great War, Faunus. Max had to re-read several times and pinch himself to check if he hadn't read anything wrong.

The world was so much different from what he knew, the things he read felt like someone took it straight out of a fantasy movie. But it was all real, his body being proof. Everything about this world was ridiculously different from earth, yet oddly similar if you looked closely

The ever-rising presence of technology, the abundance of weaponry, the aftereffects of war in society, discrimination and racial stigma. Even the language and writing was identical to English despite the extreme differences in history and tradition.

But one aspect of Remnant sent him reeling, the likely reason that remnant differed from Earth.

The Creatures of Grimm. Animal-like beasts dubbed "The Creatures of Destruction". Soulless and merciless monsters that have been around since the dawn of humanity. Drawn by negative emotion and the blood of humanity. It sounded something straight out of a nightmare.

But despite the dread they inspire, despite the fear of death, Max couldn't help but want to fight one. He needed to see it to believe it. For all he knew, he might have picked up a fantasy art book.

Besides, he would be getting paid for killing one, and his situation didn't exactly provide financial security. And he was still a teenager at heart despite his past. Max wouldn't be caught dead working at someplace boring like a convenience store.

"Some preparation would be nice though…" Max muttered to himself.

If anything in the books were remotely accurate then a pocketknife and a gun would barely do anything to the weakest Beowolf. And neither would a fourteen-year-old with barely any real combat training.

' _I could barely fight off that green guy, and he was just some drunk asshole. I'd be dead in a minute if I fought any of those things_ _._ _A seriously gotta toughen up._ _'_

 _ **Cultivate your strength, become worthy of the answers you so want. Only then will I tell you. But, I recommend saying Menu before you try.**_

Max remembered the voice's little advice from yesterday and scowled. "I hope I'm right about this…"

Opening the Menu and entering the Settings, Max opened the Help tab.

* * *

 **[Help]**

 **[Getting Stronger]**

 **[Ranks and Rarities]**

 **[Skills and Talents]**

 **[Classes and Achievements]**

 **Version 2.5.7**

 **[Getting Stronger- Leveling Up: You level up by collecting exp through quests or battle instances. Every level up boosts your base Health and Stamina and gives you a number of points to boost your stats]**

 **[Getting Stronger- Stats: Each of your stats measure your physical abilities. You can improve your stats by using level up points or training. Certain classes improve certain stats faster.]**

* * *

"Battle instances huh?" Max knew how to solve his money dilemma and get stronger at the same time. It was risky, especially with the enhanced abilities of aura users and his lack therein. Not to mention the extremely high chance of injury. But it was arguably the quickest option short of running blindly at a beowolf with a sword like an idiot.

People might be enamored by the tall buildings and bustling sounds of the big city. But those who are disillusioned by these things know that in even the cleanest of cities there was always an underground if you looked deep enough.

* * *

Max walked down the creaking wooden stairs, following the line of fighters. The raving spectators and the swarmed bet table staring expectantly at the huddled mass.

Dim lights hung above, illuminating rusted metal bars on the ceiling. A misshapen square of tape and stacked tires served as a makeshift ring. The benches on the side jam-packed, money being exchanged back and forth between the fighter stand and the betting table.

Max joined the sea of people, his shorter body being ignored by the grizzled men towering above him. The smell of anxiety and excitement filled the air. Everyone had a reason for being there.

The need for money or simple greed. The recognition and glory earned in the arena. Some wanted to destroy themselves but wouldn't do it themselves. And some simply had the desire the fight.

The one thing they all had in common was that they were staring expectantly a tall bearded man, 'The ringleader' Max supposed.

"Quite a crowd tonight plenty of old faces, plenty of new mugs. But that means plenty of new blood." The man spoke bluntly.

"Well then Lady and Gentlemen, I'm lookin' at you Christine, welcome to the cage. A place where, human or faunus, you're nothing more than a wild animal, rabid dogs itching to fight. Don't look at me like that, you know I'm right."

The ringleader's grin sent a small shiver through Max's spine. What it was from, the boy did not know.

"First Rule of The Cage, you do not talk about The Cage."

"Second Rule of The Cage, you do NOT talk about The Cage."

"Third Rule of The Cage, If someone yells stop, goes limp, taps out, the fight is over."

"Fourth Rule, only four guys max to a fight, don't want to get too crazy in here, ya bloody bastards."

"Fifth Rule, no Semblances. Can't have anyone blowin' up the ring just yet." the audience chuckled lightly.

"Sixth Rule, no hitting the audience. They are your payroll after all." he paused.

"But if you decide to bite the bullet and do something _that_ stupid, my men" the tall man motioned to the black-suited, sword-wielding men lined on the wall "will _escort_ you out." it didn't take a genius to realize what he really meant.

"Seventh Rule." By this time everyone in the fighter section was stretching out and bracing themselves. "The better the fight the better the pay, so no slackin' with the punches."

"And the eighth and final rule…If this is your first day in The Cage, you either bet…or you fight. No exceptions."

* * *

 **[Side Quest: Caged Animal I]**

 **[Primary Objective: Fight for 2 minutes without quitting [Incomplete] | Secondary Objective 1: Fight for 5 minutes without quitting [Incomplete] |Secondary Objective 2: Win the fight [Incomplete] ]**

 **[Primary Reward: 250 exp, 1350 lien | Secondary Reward 1: 200 exp, 1000 lien | Secondary Reward 2: 300 exp, 1250 lien]**

* * *

Max steadied his breathing and looked over his opponent.

 **[Gary Green | Level 4 | HP:180 ]**

 **[Max Argentum | Level 2 | HP: 130 ]**

' _Shit, he's got me beat big time_ _._ _I gotta fight dirty if I wanna leave this place in one p-_ _'_ Max's train of thought was interrupted by a hard jab to his cheek.

Shaking the tension out of his jaw, he brought up his arms to block several hard blows that threatened to break his nose. He ducked and sent his fist flying towards his opponent's nose, causing a small amount of blood to fly out.

The yells of the crowd increased with every blow. Ending his assault or punches Max launched a sharp turning kick which caused the older man to sink on one knee, panting yet still determined. He planned to end things with a powerful kick to the face, but it was dodged and he was tackled. Blow after blow landed, leaving purple bruises on his face and arms.

But Max was able to catch the man's hands and stop the painful onslaught. The man was kicked into the stack of tires on the side, his head bouncing off roughly.

Before he could catch his bearings, the man's head was pushed back roughly, several punches hitting his stomach, knocking the breath out of him. The man was able to stagger out of the boy's way, and in an instant Max was pushed to the ground with Gary's arm was wrapped around his neck, trying to choke him into submission.

The crowd was in an uproar, feeding off of the duo's savage energy. And the two in the ring were no different, hyped on adrenaline and their will to outshine the other.

"C'mon kid…*pant*…make this easier…*pant*…on yourself and…tap out." the man was slowing down despite his advantage. Meanwhile, Max, despite being physically weaker, was the least damaged and most calm out of the two.

The stone-faced boy responded by elbowing the man slowly causing his grip to weaken. Wrestling himself away Max punched the tired man's broken nose, sending blood across the floor.

The man, being in too much pain to fight much longer tapped the ground as hard as he could.

Max, in a show of victory, shot his fist into the air. He was panting and wheezing like an old guy in a marathon, but won nonetheless.

The crowd went wild. Their screams reverberated in all four of his ears. Max was calm on the outside, but inside he was astonished that he won.

"Not bad…for fresh meet." The ringleader muttered.

The boy walked past the downed man with a limp in his step and a stoic face. He spared the scrawny man a fleeting glance and went back to the fighter stands. The night wasn't over yet.

By the end of the night, Max left The Cage with 3 wins under his belt and dozens of bruises marring his skin.

* * *

 **[Side Quest: Caged Animal I]**

 **[ Primary Objective [Complete] | Secondary Objective 1 [Incomplete] | Secondary Objective [Complete] ]**

 **[Achievement(s) Get: Enter the Underground, Brutality, Breakneck Training 1]**

 **[Max Argentum | Level 2 - Level 6 (138/400) ]**

 **[HP: 210/210 | SP: 180/180 | LOCKED**

 **[Strength: 6 - 10 | Vitality: 7 - 11| Constitution: 5 - 8| Agility: 8 - 13| Dexterity: 6 - 11 | Spirit:LOCKED]**

 **[Attribute Points earned: 20]**

* * *

Max was at his temporary "home" on top of the roof, looking proudly at himself and at the menu. Back on earth he tried to avoid actual fights and settle for sneaking up on people. But tonight, he got into a straight-up, no hold's barred fistfight, and won!

Coming out of The Cage with a few wins under his belt and no broken bones, to his knowledge, did wonders for his pride.

He ran his hands over his ears and tail, surprised and slightly grateful than no one damage or commented on his tails. But it was unexpected considering the nature of The Cage.

Down there it seemed that you didn't have a real identity.

A fighter in the cage didn't have a face, a name, or even a voice. Down there a person was nothing more than a pair of fists and feet. As long as the crown was pleased they didn't care how many bones someone broke, how much blood you shed, how destroyed your body was.

There were rules that were upheld strongly, the last half of Max's third fight was evidence of that. But they were there to keep the crowd from leaving and the beasts from dying.

It was depressing but Max couldn't care less.

With that though, Max lied down. He would use his 'Attribute Points' in the morning. He needed some shut-eye.

* * *

 ** _Maxy Chibi ep2_**

 _In even the cleanest of cities, there was always an underground if you looked deep enough._

" _Uh…kid? What the hell are you doing?" A jogger was staring owlishly at the silver-haired boy in from of him._

 _Max was digging a wide hole in the ground, a large pile of grass and dirt on the side._

 _Where he got the shovel, nobody knew._

 _The boy's eyes were dilated, his teeth were gritted, and his jacket was tied around his head like a turban._

" _I'M DOING THIS TO GET STRONGER!" The boy screeched, irritated at his concentration being broken._

" _Okay..I'm just…gonna…go away now. Good luck…getting stronger?" the man backed away from the manic boy._

 _With all distractions gone now, Max started digging faster, humming a cheerful tune._

" _Diggin a Hole, I'm Diggin a Hole. Diggin a Hole, I'm Diggin a Hole."_

 ** _5 Days and 2 shovels later._**

" _WHY AM I NOT GETTING STRONGER?!" Max was rapidly scrapping at a plate of metal, several dozen feet underground._

 _Dropping the third bent shovel, Max dusted himself off "Well time for plan B."_

 _Max tried to climb up the wall, but only succeeded in dirtying himself more._

" _UM…HELLO! ANYONE THERE!? I'M A MINOR STUCK IN A HOLE! PLEASE? IT'S KINDA COLD DOWN HERE! AT LEAST THROW DOWN SOME FOOD…OR LIKE A…BLANKET OR SOMETHING? MAYBE A BUCKET?"_

" _HELLLLLLOOOOOOO!?"_

 _Max died of Boredom 3 weeks later._


	4. Chapter 4: 1st Day of Work

**Less Than a Hero, More Than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 4**

* * *

Max sat back on a crate in The Cage, a large bruise on his uncovered chest. The boy taped an ice pack over his black eye. His uncovered left eye glared at the bloodstained wrappings covering his arms.

' _I'm really starting to regret coming here every night.'_

Every day for the last 2 weeks Max went into the cage. Every day for the last 3 weeks he has made a living punching, kicking, and throwing. Every day for the past 3 weeks, he's trudged to his so-called "home" feeling like a walking bruise.

The bruises got worse with every fight, the toil of each day stacking on top of each other. Max was getting stronger from it, sure, but each fight was becoming more and more tedious and painful.

Max felt a surge of excitement during his first dozen fights. Every time his opponent hit the floor he had to keep himself from grinning.

But the exhilaration had long since faded and coming to The Cage was just a daily routine.

' _Now it was just me waiting for the other guy to either hit the floor or my face.'_ Max thought morosely.

A rude voice called out, "Hey dog boy!"

' _Ugh, not this asshole again.'_

Gary Green was always trying to start a fight with someone, even when he wasn't in the ring. The scrawny guy would either go nonstop about his matches being flukes if he lost or brag all night if he won.

Everyone thought he was annoying, but they couldn't exactly kick him out. But to Max, the man was just plain infuriating. Watching the prick hit the ground always gave the boy a sick sense of satisfaction that normal fights just couldn't anymore.

Which is why nearly every time Gary got a little stir crazy Max volunteered to fight him.

"I'm a wolf Gary," Max growled out, "What do you want? _O_ _ther than your head in the dirt_." he muttered near the end.

"The ringmaster wants you upstairs dog breath." Gary's little jab caused Max's eye to twitch.

*CRASH*

Max's fist flew into Gary's eye, causing him to slam into the wall behind him. The shocked man regained his footing a few seconds later, clutching his blackened eye. Gary saw his aggressor walking up the stairs looking at him with a blank face.

"Don't call me dog breath again," Max instructed the stunned man in a bored tone.

* * *

Junior's Bar was loud, extremely loud.

And bright.

And smelly.

' _Just how is this place open?_ _'_

Max hadn't been inside many bars so maybe he wouldn't know what a "good" bar looks like, or a bad one either. Still, after spending his nights in a dark, dimly lit basement, the sudden bright lights were annoying.

Max eyed the man behind the counter, the ringmaster of The Cage he realized. The silverette recognized a few familiar faces from The Cage chatting nearby.

"You serious about this Xiong, he's what, 15?" an orange-haired man questioned.

"Don't you of all people give me a lecture about child labor laws. It's your fault I'm low on men anyway, and I don't exactly have job applications lined up."

"I keep telling you that wasn't…*sigh* Just don't blame me if these guys come back charbroiled."

The man walked off, followed by a short girl with an umbrella. Max looked back at the counter to see someone patting an empty seat, silently calling him over.

Sitting down the boy asked, "You called me for something?" Max duly noticed the people taking seats next to him asking the same question.

"To all of you who don't know me my name is Junior Xiong," The man introduced, "And I would like to offer you eight a job at this fine establishment."

"What would we be doing here exactly?" A man with sandy blonde hair asked curtly.

"Eh, just body-guarding, working at the bar, the occasional job request from one of my colleagues. Interested?"

A woman on the far right spoke up, "Not that I'm saying no or anything, but why would you hire **us** of all people?"

"Most people that come down to The Cage are just there for the hell of it. They show up for one night, get tired of being punched or losing bets, and never show their faces again." He sounded bitter about the fact.

"But you guys aren't like most people."He continued, "You show up every night and do nothing but fight. You're a bunch of maniacs who are either desperate for cash or just plain crazy, qualities I appreciate in my workers." Some took visible offense to this, some admitted he was right.

"So," He leaned forward with a questioning look on his face, "Are. You. In?"

* * *

 **The Next Day**

Max stared at the mirror in the employee changing room. He aimlessly moved his arms around. The red and black suit was surprisingly comfortable.

The boy tried to put the hat on but struggled to get his ears comfortable and constantly had to push his bangs out of his eyes. Frustrated, he threw the hat into a pile of clothes and returned to the mirror.

"Hey kid, quit starin' at yourself, we got shit to do." One of his new 'coworkers' signaled.

Because of his inexperience and age, Junior had Max on door duty. It was very…underwhelming. All that really happened was some kid around fifteen trying to use a fake ID.

Hours went by and all Max saw were drunks stumbling out of the doors. It was so boring that he went to sleep. An hour later, he was still leaning against the wall and NOTHING happened.

 **6:00 PM**

Max twirled his sword around, doing fake slashes at an invisible enemy. He got a little carried away with a spin attack and accidentally loosened his grip. The sword flew out of the boy's hand mid-swing and impaled itself into a car window

 ***CRACK* *BEEP BEEP BEEP***

A man with sandy blond hair stood next to Max, staring at him curiously.

The silverette crept across the street and grabbed his sword through the now shattered window. He glared at the blonde, Tanuki if he remembered.

"Tell no one about this," whisper-yelled Max. The man nodded.

 **7:30 PM**

"And I thought iPhones were high-tech." Max was messing around with his scroll, trying to figure it out before he wiped at the data from it.

' _Wait, that icon looks familiar…What the hell is DustTube?'_

 _And I was like baby, baby, baby oh_

 _Like baby, baby, baby no_

 _Like baby, baby, baby oh_

"WHAT THE FLYING FUHHHH!?" Max threw the abomination on the floor closing the pit of hell that was that song. His vision blurred and his hands shook from some type of PTSD.

"Uhh, I think you dropped this." Tanuki reached for Max's scroll but the boy caught his hand midway.

"NO! You leave that damned machine its vile machinations. It is sick and needs to be disposed of."

"Kid it's just Dustin Cleaver-"

"NO, it is a demon from hell!" Max shouted, outraged at the man's ignorance.

"But-"

"REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

 **10:00 PM**

"Hey, kid?" Tanuki had been trying to make small talk for the last half an hour, with Max being content to ignore him and try to fall asleep.

...

"Heeyyyy, kid?"

...

"Kid?"

...

"Are you awake?"

...

"Kid?"

"Oh my fucking god, what is it Tanuki?"

"Why exactly are you here?"

Max stared at the blonde blankly, "Cause I'm being **paid** to stand here, genius."

"No, No, that's not it. The rest of us really don't really have much of a choice but be here. But what about you?"

"What _about_ me?"

"Not to knock on you, but you're like 14, people your age are usually going to you know…school n' stuff and doing that whole self-discovery thing. But what about you? You kinda seem to be just…existing like the rest of us."

Max was having a hard time finding an answer. He was having a harder time finding a reason to _give_ Tanuki an answer. And he was having an even harder time finding a reason to care about either.

"Whatever happens, happens. As long as I'm alive, fed, and still have all my limbs I'll be straight."

Max ignored Tanuki's reply, It probably wasn't important first priority was making sure junior didn't catch him slack off. Luckily he had a solution. He became still against the wall, eyes open but seeing nothing. A stoic unblinking statue.

Basically, he fell asleep with his eyes open.

 **11:59 PM**

 _'Come on, you stupid clock! This minute feels like it's been going on forever.'_

 **12:00 am**

Max sighed in relief and went inside. The workday was boring, increasingly so. But it was a far safer way to get money than going to The Cage every night.

' _Just 6 more days until I get an actual paycheck.'_ he thought as he began to deposit his uniform.

"All right newbies, shift's over. You can keep the gear, just don't damage it." Yelled Junior.

The others went to their homes or their cars, figures with it being midnight and all, but Max hung around in the back of the bar.

The boy looked over his sword and clothes. Over the week he realized that he could analyze things, similar to the way he saw Gary's 'HP' and 'Level' which roughly translated to Endurance and Skill.

And for some reason when he stared long enough at his food, whatever facts he knew about it came up. It was a weird experience, but it taught Max two things.

That he could analyze people and items somehow.

And pizza restores 30 'SP' and gives a +1 strength boost for a minute, not that he was complaining. _'Who would've thought?'_

Max named this bizarre, but helpful ability 'The Third Eye'.

* * *

 **[ Xiong Sword (Red) (Uncommon 1) (x1.5 Damage) (Slash) ]**

 **[Strength Requirement: 13 | Dexterity Requirement: 14]**

 **[ Xiong Clothes Set (Black/Red) (Uncommon 1) (Manufactured) ]**

 **[ Contents: Suit(Upper), Suit(Lower), Gloves(Red), Dress Shoes(Black), Sunglasses(Red), Dress hat(Black)**

 **[ Damage Taken: -5** **| Level 3 Temperature Resistance ]**

* * *

' _Even clothes give bonuses? Ugh, this will be as complicated as it is helpful.'_

Max surfed the Menu, reminded of the 'quest' he received two weeks ago. He wanted to do it right away but a quick use of 'The Third Eye' on the guidebook told him that his stats were way too low to make even a young beowolf flinch.

He slipped the Xiong Sword into 'The Pocket', another feature of the Menu where Max could put things like food or clothes into his pocket at it wouldn't fill up much space.

Max hasn't found a limit, but the Menu said there was one, and explicitly told him that large amounts of pizza couldn't be stored there, much to the boy's irritation.

There was a forest to the east of Vale that was sealed off because of the concentration of Grimm. The perfect place to go hunting.

The Bus dropped him off 10 minutes away from the border. Max briskly walked down the path to the forest, careful not to aggravate his injuries.

Concrete ground slowly turned into beaten dirt road. Max ducked into the high grass, looking for the gates while trying to stay hidden.

The gates seemed thick, heavily reinforced, dozens of feet tall. Two huntresses flanked the gate's entrance, their oversized swords prepared to swipe any Grimm or intruder in their path.

Max picked up a large rock and climbed up a nearby tree, wincing with every move upward. He carefully reared his arm back, taking plenty of time to adjust his aim before throwing his rock a distance away from the huntresses.

Max, seeing them distracted, ran across a thick branch and jumped as high as he could. Much to his surprise, he almost sailed over the wall entirely, balancing on the edge by the heels of his feet.

Max looked over the other side, surprised to see neither of the huntresses looking for him. The boy sighed in relief before noticing the bars in the corner of his vision.

 **[ HP: 402/440 | SP: 315/390 ]**

' _Where the hell did that come from?'_

Pushing aside his surprising jump, the silverette looked down in front of him, noticing a tree a fair distance away that he could land on without hurting himself.

Taking a calming breath Max jumped, barely reaching one of the tree's branches. However, it wasn't sturdy enough to hold his full weight and broke after a few seconds.

Max fell into a sloppy roll, cringing in pain as he fell. Composing himself he searched the area for any signs of movement, noticing a set of large animal footprints.

' _There!'_

The boy followed the tracks for several minutes, his ears perking up from the sudden growling from across the shrubbery. He ducked low looking around the bushes, freezing at what he saw.

Their arms were massive like barrels. Spikes jutted from every limb, and black smoke radiated from their paws with every step. Their faces were made of white twisted bone and their teeth were razor-sharp, making knives look blunt in comparison. Red, glowing soulless eyes illuminated their dark shapes.

A small pack of beowolves was sitting in the clearing in front of him, lazily licking their teeth and scratching themselves.

Max counted four in total Suddenly the largest of the group snapped to attention, sniffing the air before it turning to Max's hiding spot. Its friends followed suit, all of them preparing to pounce

Max charged out of the bushes before the Grimm could begin their assault. He ran forward to decapitate the furthermost beowolves head. However, it was able to dodge and prepared to retaliate, but one of its pack mates beat it to the punch.

Max brought up his sword to block a descending claw strike, being pushed back from the impact. This pattern continued until Max dodged under one of its strikes, slashing at its legs. He followed up by stabbing it through the mouth, causing the beowolf to freeze and slowly dissipate into ash.

Max had little time to savor his kill as he saw two beowolves charging at him through the ashes. He rolled between one's legs and stabbed it in the back soon after. The boy then circled around the injured beowolf and impaled its eye with all of his might.

A strong wind blew through the clearing, sending the destroyed beowolf's remains into the silverette's eyes, giving the remaining three grimm an opening.

The largest of the pack sent Max flying into a rough tree. The boy's right arm took the majority of the impact. Max fell to the ground, seeing his arm bruised and covered with splinters through his torn sleeve.

Max felt something sharp press into his injured arm, looking up to see a fourth beowolf looming over him, its claw pinning his arm down.

Max seeing his sword a few feet away fumbled around 'The Pocket' with his free hand grabbing the knife he had gained from his would-be mugger.

He stabbed the small weapon into the monster's wrist making it withdraw and giving Max a chance to scramble away to his sword. Swiftly turning around, Max cut the beowolf across the neck and then stabbed it in the chest, killing it.

An adrenaline-fueled Max turned to the final beowolf and charged, the beast doing the same.

Max went into a pattern of feinting to the beowolf's side and trying to attack, with the beast narrowly dodging. The boy soon ceased this pattern and attacked head-on. Unfortunately, the beowolf was faster than him, jumping out of the way and preparing to cut the silver-haired boy down.

Max saw the beast's claws coming toward him and reacted quickly, slicing the offending limb off at the base causing the Grimm to cry out in what one could assume was pain. Max then stabbed it in the stomach and with a defiant yell pulled his blade up, cutting the beowolf's torso in half.

As the beowolf turned into ashes, the adrenaline faded from Max's body, the boy dropping his sword on the ground and sinking to his knees.

* * *

 **[Main Quest: New World 1]**

 **[ Primary Objective 1 [Complete] | Primary Objective 2 [Complete] ]**

 **[Achievement(s) Get: Breaking and Entering 2, Novice Grimm Hunter 1]**

 **[Received: Rank 1 Weapon Materials]**

 **[ Max Argentum | Level 9 (121/1000)** **»** **Level 10 (1388/1500) ]**

 **[Lien: $16,680 - $19,630]**

 **[ HP: 327/460 | SP: 48/410]**

 **[ STR: 28** **»** **30 | VIT: 30** **»** **32 | CON: 25** **»** **27 | AGL: 34** **»** **36 | DEX: 31** **»** **33 | Spirit: LOCKED ]**

 **[Check the 'Skills and Talents' Menu for abilities]**

* * *

A large box landed in front of Max, full of metal parts, gears, and cloth. Several colors of cloth and paint were at the bottom. The boy 'Pocketed' the box, too exhausted to use the Third Eye.

Max ate a few slices of pepperoni pizza he had stored in 'The Pocket', each not doing much to re-energize him aside from clearing his head. With the beowolves destroyed and his quest completed the silver-haired boy was faced with a new dilemma

' _How the hell do I get out of here?'_

* * *

 ** _Maxy Chibi ep3_**

 ** _First Hour_**

 _Tanuki: Hey._

 _Max: Yeah?_

 _Tanuki: You ever wonder why we're here?_

 _Max: It's one of life's great mysteries isn't it? Why are we here? I mean, are we the product of some cosmic coincidence, or is there really a God watching everything? You know, with a plan for us and stuff. I don't know, man, but it keeps me up at night._

 _Both stare at each other in silence._

 _Tanuki: ...What?! I mean why are we out here, in front of the bar? Nothing really happens outside of bars_

 _Max: Oh. Uh... yeah._

 _Tanuki: What was all that stuff about God?_

 _Max: Uh...hm? Nothing._

 _Tanuki: You wanna talk about it?_

 _Max: No._

 _Tanuki: You sure?_

 _Max: Yeah._

 _Random Guy: IS THAT A MOTHERFUCKING RvB REFERENCE!?_

 _Max: Tanuki._

 _Tanuki: Yeah?_

 _Max: I'm gonna kill him._

 **Looking back on this chapter, I realized that it was a fucking shit show. There were so many problems with the dialogue and grammar. This will probably be the most altered edited chapter. I will under no circumstances use 1st person PoV again. I realized that it just wasn't my style. Sorry for the inconvenience I promise to never make a mistake this major again.**

 **Base stat Average: 5**

 **Civilian stat Average: 15** **-20**

 **Huntsmen Trainee stat Average:** **60-70**

 **Beacon Academy stat Average:** **150-200**

 **Huntsman stat Average:** **300-350**

 **Maiden stat Average:** **450-500**

 **Higher Warriors stat Average:** **500**


	5. Chapter 5: A New Blade

**Less Than a Hero, More Than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 5**

* * *

Max tripped over his feet, his exhaustion having grown during the trip back. It was a hefty trial sneaking back over the wall without getting caught, twice he just barely avoided the guards' detection. It was miraculous that he managed to get back into the city in his current state.

Even Max himself didn't understand how he pulled it off.

But now that he thought about it, the police under normal circumstances WOULD have caught them. They SHOULD have caught him. Police operations weren't his forte but if anyone had attempted what he had done, they'd be halfway to the police station before they got close to the wall. But these weren't normal circumstances were they?

Max recalled his brief, yet informative, look at the news. The reporters mentioned an extreme rise in crime and terrorism in the past few months. Could that have something to do with his current luck?

The answer would have been obvious to someone in a stable state of mind, but Max's injuries kept him from lingering on those thoughts for long, his mind more focused on getting something to treat his still-bleeding arm and aching ribs.

The boy was scanning the streets frantically, looking for somewhere he could buy medicine. Gouze wraps, painkillers, hell, Max would settle for band-aids. Anything to ease even a little bit of the pain. After looking for nearly half an hour but coming up unsuccessful, the silverette was ready to call it a night and head to Junior's. That is until he saw it…

Heffley's Drug Store, Max's (possibly literal) lifesaver. There wasn't much on the shelves, just some antiseptics, and off-brand painkillers. Some bandages and gauze wrap could be spotted here or there, discarded in favor of the higher quality supplies.

It was incredibly mediocre in terms of medicine, but it was enough to keep his injuries from becoming infected…hopefully.

Max looked at the ceiling and then quickly at the counter and back at the shelves. He scooped up supplies in his arms and shifted the bundle to make it seem smaller. While walking to the counter he tripped, sending everything in his arms flying. He scrambled around, quickly snatching things off the ground before laughing sheepishly at the amused clerk.

He dug around for his wallet and gave the man a few hundred lien before leaving with his head down in exaggerated embarrassment about his "slip up".

Max went en route toward Junior's bar, the shyness practically melting off of his face. He dug into 'the pocket' revealing several hidden bandages and painkillers before dumping them into his bag. He ducked behind the back of the bar and got to work.

The boy pulled a bottle of alcohol from his 'Pocket' and poured the burning liquid over his arm, hissing at the sensation. He pulled a piece of gauze from its box, using it to wipe the caked blood off his arm and wrapped a clean chunk around his scarred arm.

Max downed a few painkillers, feeling the aching in his arm and his headache fade away slightly. Now all Max needed was a soft bed and a nice shower and he would feel like a thousand bucks.

' _Wouldn't count on it.'_ Max thought tiredly.

The injured boy noticed a sliver of light emitting from a low window. He pulled himself over to the window and crawled inside, landing on the cold, hard floor with a soft thud.

Bottles and barrels of many shapes and sizes filled the dimly lit room to the brim. The stench of alcohol filled his nostrils causing him to recoil. Spare sheets were bundles in a corner, matching the ones draped over the barrels. He shut the window to keep any more cold air from entering and gingerly picked up the sheets, throwing one to the ground and stuffing the second into 'the pocket', albeit with much difficulty.

Max grabbed the third sheet noticing a small glimmer underneath, revealing an old shattered mirror.

It was strange for Max to look himself in the eyes in his current state. His now silver hair was even messier than usual. His ears seemed permanently drooped and his eyes had heavy bags under them, his black eye emphasized one of which.

None of this bothered the boy as much as they should have. It was the state of the reflection itself that bothered Max. The mirror was shattered into dozens of pieces. Some part of him reflected off of every shard, all of them together forming a fragmented version of his face.

With every movement made, with every breath taken, the image changed and became more distorted the closer he got to the mirror. Max threw the sheet back over the mirror, seeing no point in looking anymore.

Max wrapped himself in the thick sheet, and fell asleep astonishingly fast, at least in his perspective. Not too long after Max fell asleep someone cracked the door open. The person looked shocked for a moment before leaving with a small grumble.

* * *

"You know this is coming out of your paycheck right." It was early in the morning. Junior had shaken Max awake and told to get his uniform on.

"Yeah, yeah I know," Max stated tiredly, yet with a slight glimmer of gratitude in his eyes.

"Just don't touch the booze or fuck up the place and I won't mind you hanging around." An old, dirty mattress was in the corner of the storage room. Max stacked his "casual clothes" next to it in a messy pile. Junior handed the boy his sword, the grime from yesterday cleaned off.

Junior's voice broke the awkward silence, "Now if you don't mind, it's the morning rush and people want their morning dose of happy juice."

Max gave the burly man a curious stare, "Morning rush? But it ain't even ten o'clock yet." A deep bark of laughter came from the bartender.

"So? You say that as if these drunken bastards can operate without alcohol." A chuckle escaped the man as he went down the hallway, Max following a few feet behind.

'Morning Rush. This guy has got to be kidding…' Max's train of thought was disrupted as he entered the bar. It looked no different from it had last night, aside from the strobe light being dimmer and low sunlight coming through the windows. Max almost gaped at the stage, dozens of people, some of which looked like they had just gotten out of bed, with shot-glasses and bottles in their hands at _nine in the goddamn morning_.

"Hey, less staring, more serving. Get to it, newbie."

Max went over to the counter to look at the drink orders. He inwardly face-palmed at some of them, particularly the sheer amount of them. It was almost distressing how much these people wanted to get hammered, but Max had a job to do. And so he gave out drinks until the sun went down. By that time the steady rush of people became a torrent, with only a few stragglers from earlier that day remaining, most being far too drunk to stand.

However, the ones that remained…

"All right that's it. Get out. Now." Max practically growled at a small group of plastered fifteen-year-olds that he recognized from the morning.

"WoAh-wOAh-woaH," The tallest of the group slurred out, "Duh-Dueh-Dude, jus reLex maAaAaN, hEve at bEeR er too." His words were sloppy and had a nonsensical tone about them. He flailed and thrashed, doing what his alcohol-addled mind registered as dance moves.

His friends were copying his "style" with one sprawled on the floor in a pool of vomit, and another looking at Max apologetically with no signs of drinking on her. She looked away flustered and pointing to her "friends" and then to the exit. Max, catching the hint, took the aggressive approach and grabbed two by the collar and walked to the door, the teens in his hands too wasted to protest.

"If I see you guys here anytime soon, you'll be paying an entrance fee, and believe me it won't be cheap." Max threw the two on the sidewalk, the girl from before leaving with the guy covered in puke. She muttered a quick apology before leaving with the rest of the group in tow.

Max looked at the clock at the entrance, seeing that his shift was over. He quickly changed into his casual clothes and walked downtown. A small shiver passed through him, reminding him of the current weather. He sped up, careful not to aggravate his injury.

He found a fairly uncrowded shop that had some decent quality parkas on sale. Winter was coming very early this year, so the stores responded in kind. Max spotted a fairly nice coat in his opinion.

It was slightly thin, gray with black designs and had fur around the hood. Max bought some matching boots and some black cargo pants with them. It cost a couple hundred Lien and was a hassle trying to 'pocket', but was a worthwhile purchase in the boy's mind.

Max dug around 'the pocket', pulling out the box of materials he retrieved yesterday. He noticed many people stopped to look at him in shock at the large box appearing in his hands. Max, seeing someone heading his way, shoved the box back into 'the pocket' with all of his strength and ran off.

Once he was out of sight he pulled out "his" scroll to look for a place to use the materials in the box. He aimlessly closed several…obscene pop-ups and notifications.

' _I've seriously got to clear this damn thing out. Hmm…This looks interesting. Meta's Metal Makers...You Dealt It...We Smelt It...What the actual fuck?'_

Despite the…extremely cringe-worthy catchphrase, it was in the area and had some decent reviews. It would be extremely painful walking in but hopefully, it would be worth it before walking out.

"Annnnd it's half an hour away…and my bus pass expired yesterday…dammit."

* * *

It was worse looking at it in person. The large, almost garish sign stared Max right in the face, mocking him.

 **META'S METAL MAKERS** **:** **YOU DEALT IT, WE SMELT IT** **!**

Some people glanced oddly at the boy glaring at the sign like it had killed his dog and is now wearing it like a festive hat.

' _Why!? I-It's just so...so…stupid. I…I just don't have any words for this.'_

Taking the plunge into parts unknown, Max opened the door hearing a small jingle as he entered. The walls were lined with weapon posters, swords and guns hung in display cases. Heat washed over him as he moved closer to the counter, the forge visible in the back room. The person manning the store looked…fairly normal much to Max's surprise

The shopkeeper caught sight of Max "Oh! Didn't see you there. Welcome to Meta's Metal Makers. You Dealt It, We Smelt it!" _'Oh, not this shit again!'_ , "Name's Meta, what can I do for you?"

Max pretended to grab the large box from behind a shelf before presenting it to the man, "I need something I can fight Grimm with, and my old hand-me-down sword isn't doing me any favors."

The man looked between the contents of the box and Max appraisingly before seemingly flashing to his side with a tape measure in hand. Quickly, but precisely measuring the confused boy, even going as far as to get a scale, he wrote frantically on his notepad, causing Max to get even more confused at his antics.

"Would you call yourself a close, middle, or long-ranged fighter?" Meta's voice had changed from that of a carefree boy to almost robotic professionalism.

"Ummm…Mid ranged?" Max stated as more than a question than an answer.

"Alright," more scribbling, "any color preferences?"

"Maybe…silver?"

"Alright, I will be done your weapon in a few hours." He sped to the back room, snatching up the box and slamming the door behind him.

Max just slumped into a chair bored, finding little interest in the various magazines. He was about to fall asleep before a message tone came from his scroll.

"What in the…Tanuki? How the hell do I have his number?"

 _TANUKEY: Hey kid, you left your phone at the front door yesterday_

 _TANUKEY: So I took the liberty of adding myself to your contacts_

 _TANUKEY: I need someone to share my memes with_

A Dustube link was sent right after. Max tapped on it warily, hoping it wasn't a virus or worse, a Dustin Cleaver video. Just thinking the name made him want to spit out his late-mid evening pizza.

Peaceful ocean waves appeared on-screen, swaying slowly across the sand. The muted sound of rushing water filled Max's ears. He couldn't tell where the clear blue ocean ended, and where the cloudless sky began. Despite what little was happening, it was surprisingly satisfying to watch.

Max almost considered sending a thank-you message before a familiar track of music assaulted his ears.

A well-dressed man with ash-colored hair was dancing to the music before bursting into song.

 _Never gonna give you up_

 _Never gonna let you down_

 _Never gonna run around and desert you_

The tune continued uninterpreted while Max stared at his scroll, his eye twitching every few seconds.

"So that's a thing here too." Max pinched the bridge of his nose and turned down the volume, but just couldn't help but tap his foot along to the music, humming the lyrics lowly.

Max aimlessly surfed the internet for hours, losing his perception of time like any other teenager, before Meta suddenly appeared before him with a long wrapped-up object in his hands, eagerly presenting it to the shocked teen.

Max gingerly held the shaft of the covered weapon, feeling cold steel under the thin cloth. He slowly pulled the cloth off, revealing a five-foot-long spear. The sliver blade was wide and arrow-shaped, with a strange mechanism below it. Two triggers were along the middle of the pole with two switches near the blade.

"The top trigger is to activate the firing mechanism and the bottom one is to fire it. The switches are the safety and retract functions."

Max listened closely as Meta rambled on about the additional features and quirks. He swung his new blade, awing at how much more natural it felt to use than the sword given to him by Junior.

 **[Silver Spear MK I (Unnamed) (Uncommon 3) ( x2.** **25** **weapon damage) (Slash/Stab/Shoot)]**

 **[Mecha-shift: Spear-** **Shotgun** **Shell** **bullets |** **Pump Action** **1]**

 **[(Usable) Stat Requirements: 22 STR/26 DEX/21 AGL]**

 **[(Optimal) Stat Requirements: 42 STR/50 DEX/35 AGL]**

'Well, that's new.' The Xiong Sword didn't say anything about agility requirements. And while the spear was usable, he was way too weak to wield it at its best. It was kinda annoying to see how much lower his stats were than the requirements.

"Now, with the cost of crafting, customization fee, mecha-shift fee, extra temperament, minus material cost, you're looking at 7,650 Lien."

Max handed the eccentric blacksmith 8,200 Lien and used some of the change to buy some ice dust rounds and a holster that strapped over his jacket. He left after Meta give him a business card and a 10 percent off coupon for a repair.

Max considered going back into the outskirts to test out his new weapon, but the throbbing in his chest prevented those thoughts from resurfacing. He retracted his spear, the pole shortening to less than half it's length, and made his way "home".

* * *

 ** _Maxy Chibi_**

" _Uh…Meta…What…the actual FUCK is this thing?"_

" _Oh, it's a grenade launcher."_

" _But why does the top look like a mushroom?"_

" _Because it's the best shape for maximum launching distance."_

" _Okay, but what about the weird lines covering it?"_

" _They circulate oil and dust throughout the shaft so that it can fire more fluidly and rapidly."_

" _But what's with the two balls hanging off the bottom?" Max was honestly disturbed about the appearance of his weapon regardless of the "special features" it has._

" _Oh, those store the ammo and hold it in place while it's on your shoulder." Meta_ _seemed to be_ _completely oblivious about the weapon he created._

" _Why isn't there a trigger?"_

" _Oh, it's on the bottom of the shaft. Just move your hand back and forth along the bottom to pump it, and press the button next to it to fire."_

" _Ugh, you know what I give up. I'm going somewhere else."_

" _W-wait is it not shiny enough. All you have to do is spit on it and rub to make it shine."_

" _I AM NOT USING THIS AS A WEAPON!"_

" _B-but why!?"_

" _OH, I DON'T KNOW? MAYBE BECAUSE IT LOOKS LIKE A GIANT METAL PENIS YOU SICKO!"_

" _Wait, you_ _ **didn't**_ _want it to look like that?"_

" _ **NO!** " _

" _Ohhhh, you got someone else's order. Sorry man, with all the requests I get each day the faces just kinda blur together."_

" _Who in their right mind would order something that looks like this!?"_

" _Some creepy lady, Ms…Fall I believe."_

" _Damn, what a weirdo. So what does my weapon look like?"_

" _A five-foot-long, silver, arrow-_ _headed_ _spear."_

" _Cool!"_


	6. Chapter 6: Its Name is Alpha

**Less Than a Hero, More Than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 6**

* * *

 _'It's literally been a week, bones should **not** heal this fast.'_

Max was fumbling around with his tie, with his suit coat thrown over a wine crate. The ever-present pain in his body had faded to a dull throb. The boy could guess that he'd be fully healed in a few days. Hell, the wide scabs on his arm had peeled off while he was asleep. His skin was off-color and even _that_ was returning to normal.

' _Did the 'menu' unlock my…aura without me knowing it?_ _'_

 **HA! YOU WISH** **,** **YOU BETE LOGA WANNABE.**

"What the!?" Max jumped back in shock, accidentally messing up his tie in the process.

 **OH, I'M SORRY, DID I BREAK YOUR CONCENTRATION?**

The usual blue message pop-up from the menu appeared, but the words echoed inside Max's head. The voice was calm, mischievous, striking, but most importantly to Max, it was familiar.

"Can you just go away or something. I'm not in the mood for another one of your "offers" so fuck off."

 **WHY SO** **SERIOUS** **? YOU ASKED FOR** **ME TO GIVE YOU A FRESH START DIDN'T YOU** **YOU, AND I DID. AND PLEASE TALK IN YOUR HEAD, DON'T WANT YOU GOING TO THE LOONY BIN SO SOON.**

Max growled at the voice. It said that it would give him a new life, but it didn't say that it had to give him a god damn heart attack to do it.

 **ALRIGHT I GET IT, YOU'RE ANGRY. HOW ABOUT THIS, YOU GET THREE QUESTIONS. THREE CHANCES TO ASK ME ANYTHING YOU WANT ABOUT YOUR LITTLE TRANSFER**

"Why do I look like this? Why did you send me here? Just what the hell are you!?" Max's voice remained even, but the underlying tone of frustration in it was audible.

 **HUH, I THOUGHT YOU WOULD HAVE BETTER QUESTIONS THAN THAT. TO PUT IT SIMPLY I TOOK YOUR SOUL AND PUT IT IN A LOOKALIKE…SORTA.**

"A lookalike. This," Max motioned to his drastically different hair and…extra features, "is your definition of a lookalike."

 **Oh** **RIGHT MY BAD, I GAVE YOU A NEW LIFE AND A CHANCE TO BECOME POWERFUL. HOW** _ **DARE**_ **I NOT MAKE YOUR BODY LOOK THE SAME AS IT USED TO.** _ **REALLY, MY MISTAKE!**_

Max gulped. He heard the threat lying under its sarcasm. Maybe it would be a good idea no to antagonize it for the time being. The voice (whatever it was) acted like a dumbass but he remembered how excruciating his death on earth was. Who's to say the voice wouldn't do it again without bothering to bring him back.

"I don't mind the new body, it's just gonna take some getting used to. But it's a lot stronger than my old body" Max tapped his foot nervously.

 **WELL I'M HAPPY YOU ENJOY THE NEW SKIN-SUIT MAXY-BOY. TRY LISTENING TO ME NEXT TIME. YOUR WELCOME FOR THE HEALING BY THE WAY. HASTA LA BYE BYE** **!**

"Asshole didn't even give me the other answers…" Max wasn't surprised, in what little time he spoke with the voice he could tell it liked pissing people off. Maybe he was wrong and was just pissed off, but Max had the feeling he was right on the nose.

*PING*

Max checked his scroll and panicked. Junior had called for the 'grunts' to meet up for something important, and Max was about to be late.

* * *

The silverette crept onto the dance stage, his appearance masked by the sea of black coats and red glasses. Junior was standing in front of the D.J. booth holding a microphone.

"-emenber, this is a high profile client. Screw this up and I'll see that your bodies are floating in Bell Lake by next week!" not a single voice could be heard in the crowd, even after the burly man left back to the counter. The grunts dispersed in a frenzy, rushing for their weapons, getting on their phones, chugging down alcohol.

Max looked over to the eerily calm Tanuki. Max sent the normally cheerful man a silent question, to which he shook his head and beckoned the boy forward.

Tanuki tried to pull max close, but Max shoved his hand away and leaned forward slightly.

"Max, do you know what we're doing?" Max's face remained unchanged, "Right, stupid question. Well, then you should know that once we do this mission that you can't go back. You're still a kid, and this might be your last chance to try for a normal life." Max stood still, stoic as ever, "Just…if you want out…get out now.

Max fidgeted with his sword, shocked at the intensity in the man's voice. Max just walked away without a word. Tanuki just shook his head at the boy's stubbornness

"Idiotic Brat," Tanuki grumbled lowly.

Max walked to the bar, ordered an orange juice and waited for the client to show. Juniors bar was closed that day seeing as most of the senior staff was too high strung to function. Even the normally composed Junior was anxious, only years of training kept him from showing it.

Hours seemed to pass by in mere minutes before the client arrived…well, clients apparently.

Half a dozen well-dressed men piled in the bar. Their eyes were fierce, laced with killing intent. No one dared look them in the eye. Each step they made sent shivers through the worker's spines.

Junior's posture straightened when they reached the bar. One of them inclined his head at Max, him being the only person still on a bar stool. The boy's instincts screamed at him to move out of the man's way. A small voice in the back of Max's head told him to stay seated and stare the shady-looking man down. However, Junior's gaze and common sense immediately shut that voice up.

Once max was clear of the bar the group parted down the middle. A seventh man appeared behind them, hidden by their collective aura of intimidation.

He, unlike his apparent associates, wore an all-white suit with a black flower on his breast pocket. He was well-groomed with salt-and-pepper hair and a silver cane.

Max was curious, this man looked surprisingly normal. The boy looked the well-dressed man up and down.

 _'I don't get it, why is this guy her-'_

Max's thoughts cut off the moment he met the man's eyes. He felt like he couldn't move a muscle. Max tried desperately to look away, but his eyes stayed locked on the inky blue eyes of his newest "client".

 _'Those eyes.'_

The twin orbs were like voids, sucking the light out of the room. Cruel, Calm, and unblinking. They weren't directly focused at him, but Max could see the older man glancing at him in the corner of his eye, judging him, studying him. His mind screamed 'DANGER' over and over. Max was outwardly composed, if even more twitchy than before, but…

 _'Those eyes.'_

 _'Stop looking at me like that.'_

 _'Let me move dammit!'_

The Man blinked and looked away from the wolf-eared boy dismissively. Max's shoulders relaxed and a near-silent breath of relief escaped him. Max considered himself a composed person, but that guy made him freeze in place from just a sideways glance.

 _'Just what the hell is this guy?'_

"Mr. Xiong," the man finally spoke up in a collected, distinguished voice, "It's been a while. May I?"He motioned to an empty barstool, with Junior merely nodding.

"So, I assume your men are prepared for their assignment. Because it would be a shame if they weren't ant things become…unpleasant as a result." The man's statement came out as a hidden threat.

"Yes Mr. MacRein, each of them are acceptable for the assignment. I'll see to it that they are fully compliant with whatever terms you have." Max's enhanced ears could hear Junior nervously tapping his foot.

"Very good Mr. Xiong. If it is alright with you may we speak in your office privately to negotiate your payment?" The man, now known as Mr. MacRein, asked with a slight glare at the burly bar owner. Junior immediately put down the glass he was polishing and walked down the hall to the employees-only section of the building, the elder man following.

A grunt decided to take over the bar once the six other men had grown visibly tired of sitting around. Max took this a cue to leave and head to the basement. He had an assignment to prepare for after all.

The basement was Max's personal hideout during a hectic day. Only the executive staff or senior grunts were allowed in the basement during the hours The Cage wasn't operating. So no one would suspect that Max, a lowly, green-behind-the-ears grunt, was down there regularly.

Normally one would require a key card to enter the basement, but some drunken idiot managed to drop one on his way to The Cage, a mishap in which the silverette capitalized on. Luckily his extra, extra deep pockets kept his newest find from being discovered by his "boss".

The basement was a wonderful place to Max. It was soundproofed from the rest of the building so he wouldn't have to listen to the awful dubstep Junior mistook for music. He could mess with Tanuki by stealing his secret stash of brownies. And every once in a while some overzealous gambler would drop a few hundred Lien.

The boy snuck off into a hidden corner of the basement hidden by boxes no one else had bothered to move.

He pulled out his still-unnamed Silver Spear, trying to memorize the position of its various triggers. It constantly retracted, detracted, and shifted to ranged form in his hands. Max closed his eyes, committing the texture to his memory.

He reared his arm back, preparing for an experimental stab before he heard a faint voice somewhere behind him. Max's body tensed, had someone found him? He ducked behind one of the boxes he moved, using his enhanced eyes to scan the area. However, Max's ears heard the same voice from somewhere above. Seeing the coast clear he followed the sound to a solitary vent near the back entrance.

"-ou mean you can't give the full payment!?" Juniors muffled voice yelled in barely concealed anger.

"Careful with your tone Mr. Xiong, you shouldn't question the choices of your superiors." MacRein's calm voice responded threateningly.

"Just because you're the boss doesn't mean you get to cheat me out of half of my cut of the pay!"

"I had hoped you would understand," MacRein almost sounded disappointed, "It's been a busy month and I cannot afford to stretch my resources too thin."

A low buzzing noise could be heard and a purple light shone through the vent.

"So you'd best get what you get and don't throw a fit, because I'll have you know that I am aware of the skeletons in your closet, and I am not afraid to take my business elsewhere."

"O-Of course Mr. MacRein, you h-have my humblest apologies! I p-promise not to question your judgment anymore!" Junior's voice was crackly, almost as if it hurt him to get out.

The light faded, and Junior could be heard panting loudly over MacRein's chuckles.

"I expect nothing less Mr. Xiong. Tell your men to rendezvous at the usual spot no later than 10:30," a door could be heard opening, "Oh, and do refrain from being too distraught should a few of them…lose their way." The door shut gently, only leaving the sound of Junior desperately gasping for air.

Max was sitting on a chair near the stage in deep thought. Junior had left his office with a bruised neck. MacRein and his associates were long gone. Junior had gathered everyone in the staff lobby but Max knew what it was for.

 _'I have about 4 hours before_ _this meetup thing_ _. If I go to the forest for an hour I can make it back nine twenty, nine ten if the traffic is light.'_

 **[Quest Received-Please Check Menu]**

 _'Oh right, I almost forgot about that.'_

 **[Menu]**

 **[2.5.71 Update: Added Achievements Menu | Changed "Inventory" to "Pocket Contents]**

 **[Quests]**

 **[Stats and Equipment]**

 **[Skills and Talents]**

 **[Pocket Contents]**

 **[Menu Settings]**

 **Version 2.5.71**

"Might as well go through this while I got time," Max muttered to himself.

* * *

 **[Current Quest: Training 3]**

 **[Primary Objective: Kill 15 Grimm using {Silver Spear MK1} [Incomplete] | Secondary Objective 1: Kill 20 Grimm using {Silver Spear MK1} [Incomplete] | Secondary Objective 2: Kill 25 Grimm using {Silver Spear MK1} [Incomplete] ]**

 **[Primary Reward: 2500 Lien, 1500exp | Secondary Reward 1: 200exp, + 50HP, + 10SP | Secondary Reward 2: 200exp, +1 STR ]**

 **[Stats]**

 **[Strength; 30 | Vitality: 32 | Constitution: 27 | Agility: 36 | Dexterity | Dexterity: 33 | LOCKED ]**

 **[Skills]**

 **[Pick-pocketing: Rank-Intermediate/High 6/10]**

 **[Hand-to-Hand: Rank-Intermediate 5/10]**

 **[Spear Technique: Rank-Novice/Low 2/10]**

 **[Physical Reinforcement-10/85]**

 **[Talents]**

 **[Drink mixing: Rank-Low 3/10]**

 **[Knitting: Rank-Intermediate 5/10]**

 **[Cooking: Rank-Intermediate 5.2/10]**

 **[Comic Knowledge: Rank-High** **9** **/10]**

* * *

 _'How the hell does it know about that_ _last_ _one?'_

Max checked the time on his scroll and raced out of the building to the bus stop, his unnamed spear in hand.

The bus arrived at the same place it did last week. Max, now having the luxury of partially healed ribs, was able to move over the wall much faster. It still hurt to climb and get down from the wall, but the pain was much more bearable this time around.

The boy spent minutes looking for any Beowolf packs, cutting down a total of four lone Beowolves before…

 _'Bingo!'_

Seven Beowolves in a clearing, seemingly arguing over what looked like a dead body. An eighth Beowolf leaped out of the shrubbery and took a bite out of the cadaver, blood dripping from its fangs and spattering across the grass.

The sight almost made Max retch.

The Beowolf, with blood still dripping from its mouth, was pounced on by one of the original seven. The beasts pushed each other way and stared each other down, one circling the other. The other monsters looked on curiously.

Max moved away from the scene and switched his spear to ranged form, the blade parting down the middle and a mechanized nozzle came out. The ammo cartridge had a snowflake insignia on it.

 _'Alright Max, you've shot a gun before. Just stay calm and you'll be fine.'_ Max mentally pep-talked himself.

He aimed at a Beowolf's head, the beast too engrossed in the battle before it to notice. Max pulled the trigger but the recoil was too much for him to handle. The kickback made Max's aim shift dramatically and the blast hit one of the fighting Beowolves in the leg, ice forming on it and planting the beast to the ground.

Eight pairs of demonic eyes fixed on the silverette. Max switched his spear back to its normal state and ran into the clearing with his spear reared back. The thrust it forward into a charging Beowolf's mouth.

The boy saw a second Beowolf preparing to slash at him. He narrowly rolled out of the way and cut the side of its chest open. Max spun around and knocked a leaping Beowolf out of the air, failing to kill it completely.

Max let out a nervous breath, before parrying another claw causing him to stumble from the impact. He gained his footing and jumped into the air, bringing his blade down on its exposed torso.

 **[SP:326/410]**

Max barely took the time to acknowledge the pop-up in the corner of his vision weaving out of the way of the fourth Beowolf's claws.

He tripped over a small root giving the beast an opening to claw at his face. Max was unable to avoid the attack entirely, two shallow cuts forming on his cheek.

Max glared at the Beowolf wanting to retaliate but failed to react to the fifth Beowolf charge into him, sending him flying into a tree. The surviving four Beowolves gathered around him, eager to finish off their prey.

The injured boy got back on his feet ready to charge straight toward the beasts, but paused and took a deep breath to steady himself.

Max shifted his spear back to ranged form as the Grimm prepared to pounce on him. The second they moved Max shot several rounds toward the ground, the ice building up in from of him and serving as a makeshift shield. The silverette moved out from behind the ice and cut down the other four Beowolves, hacking, slashing, stabbing, doing whatever it took to kill them.

*Shink*

Max's spear impaled the final Beowolf's head, making its remains scatter in the wind like it's brethren. The boy leaned on his spear panting lightly, inspecting the cuts on his shirt.

It was a good thing he changed out of his work clothes before heading into the forest.

* * *

 **[Combat Ended 12 {Beowolves} Defeated: Rewards: 3000exp gained, 3000Lien gained]**

 **[LEVEL UP!]**

 **[Level 10 (1388/1500)- Level 12 (888/3000)]**

 **[HP: 396/460- 396/490 | SP: 254/410- 254/440]**

 **[Strength: 30-31 | Vitality: 32-33 | Constitution: 27-28 | Agility: 36-37 | Dexterity: 33-34 | LOCKED ]**

 **[Lien: 11,430- 14,430]**

 **[AP: 0-8]**

* * *

Max allocated his AP and looked at the quest panel. He still had three more Beowolves to kill, eight more if he wanted to get one of the bonuses. And he was still on the clock so he couldn't afford to waste any time if he wanted to get back to the bar with enough time to prepare.

The wolf boy gobbled down a slice of pizza he stashed in 'The Pocket', feeling the slight increase in strength and energy from his favorite food. He searched for nearly half an hour going deeper into the forest before he stumbled upon a cave.

A pack of small Beowolves was huddled around a lumpy figure and splattering noises echoed throughout the cave. The smell of iron entered Max's nostrils, forcing him to cover his nose.

Max was thinking of ways he could defeat them quickly.

 _'Charging in and slashing up everything would just be stupid. I could try to shoot them but the_ _kickback_ _would be too much to handle.'_

Max noticed small amounts of dust coming from the ceiling of the cave. Cracks spread throughout the top and a stalactite fell not too far away from the pack.

The stoic boy shifted his spear to ranged form and braced himself. He fired toward the crumbling ceiling, slightly buffeted by the recoil but it didn't matter. Ice formed on the top of the cave and a loud rumbling was heard. The Beowolves scattered as the cave collapsed, rocks and stone spikes crushing and impaling them.

* * *

 **[Combat Ended 9 {Beowolves} Defeated: Rewards: 900exp gained, 900Lien gained]**

 **[Quest Completed: Training 3]**

 **[Primary Objective (Complete), Secondary Objective 1 (Complete), Secondary Objective 2 (Incomplete)]**

 **[LEVEL UP!]**

 **[Level 12 (888/3000)-Level 13 (288/4000)]**

 **[HP:406/490- 406/560 | SP: 312/440- 312/470]**

 **[Strength: 33 | Vitality: 34 | Constitution: 29 | Agility: 38 | Dexterity: 37 | LOCKED ]**

 **[Lien: 14,430- 17,530]**

* * *

Max waved dust out of his eyes and looked forward, awed at how easy he killed those Beowolves with his new weapon. He wouldn't call himself a prideful person, but he couldn't help but smile at his handiwork. For the first time in years he truly felt strong.

Even with broken ribs and barely any training, he cut them down easily. He succeeded where a full-grown man failed. He felt a little remorse for the man but was still in awe of the weapon, _his_ weapon, and its strength.

"Alpha..." Max whispered.

Alpha, a word used to name the strongest wolf around, it fit perfectly. Max retracted his spear, now named Alpha, and raced as fast as he could to the exit to the forest.

* * *

 _'Just barely made it.'_ Max mentally sighed in relief. This time around he remembered to keep a bus pass in his pocket, so he made it back to the bar with just enough time to change back into his work clothes.

He hopped into the eighteen-wheeler junior had set aside for transporting large packages, or large groups in this situation. Max stood next to the crouching Tanuki. The older man looked at him, conveying a silent message to which max sent his own in response with a light glare. The sandy-haired man muttered something under his breath before shaking his head in resignation.

"You idiot, keep your head on straight, it's just a job." Max heard a grunt complain from the back of the cargo box they were in.

"Y-you don't understand just who we're dealing with Micheal!" A second grunt stuttered out.

"Just what are you going on about Kelso?"

"I shouldn't have dropped out of school. First I get a job at the shadiest bar in Vale and now we're dealing with the fucking MAFIA! I'm so fucking screwed!"

 _'THE MAFIA!?'_ Max mentally screamed.

End of chapter 6

* * *

 ** _Maxy Chibi (Halloween Version)_**

 _Max had just finished a long day of work and was sitting on the roof of Junior's Bar._

 _"Ah~ what a long, boring day. For all my hard work I think a little treat is overdue."_

 _And by a little treat, the chibi-fied silverette pulled out 5 comically large boxes of pepperoni pizza and proceeded to devour each and every slice._

 _Two minutes and 4 boxes later a strange music disrupted the quiet night._

 _Chee Chee Chee Chee Chee, Ah Ah Ah Ah Ah_

 _Chee Chee Chee Chee Chee, Ah Ah Ah Ah Ah_

 _Chee Chee Chee Chee Chee, Ah Ah Ah Ah Ah_

 _"Nani Dafuq?"_

 _A large man wearing a hockey mask was holding a bloodied machete. The large, sinister-looking man trudged toward the annoyed boy who (reluctantly) stopped eating his daily treat._

 _"Excuse me, sir, I am trying to eat my deliciously heavenly pizza in peace, thank you very much."_

 _The man ignored Max's request the music getting louder every second he was on the roof._

 _"Goddammit! I am the main character and you will respect my authoritah."_

 _The man just trudged closer._

 _"Okay, If that's what you what things to be!' Max smacked the man upside the head and Sparta kicked him off the roof and onto the sidewalk._

 _The man groaned and got up, eager to destroy his prey, but instead was met with the sight of a small, adorable black and white corgi. The dog growled menacingly causing the large man to run away pissing himself._

 _"Zweiiiii, you can't just run away like that on my birthday you adorable thing you." A twelve-year-old girl with black/red hair next to a drunken man with black hair and red eyes said in a faux scolding tone._

 _Max just looked at the scene oddly._

 _"Weirdos," he said as he began to devour the last box of pizza in little under 30 seconds._

 _He ended the night with a swollen stomach and a satisfied look on his face. He winked at the camera coolly._

 _"Happy Halloween."_

* * *

 **Author's Note (Please Read)**

 **Happy Late Halloween everyone. Anyone else gorge themselves on candy a few days ago? I know I did!**

 **Anyway, let's get down to business.**

 **Max may be my OC technically but he was actually based on several characters from different forms of media. I won't tell you each of them cause that would be pointless. But in the next few chapters I will be laying some subtle hints of one of the main influences for Max's character. The hints will more likely than not be in the 1st thousand words of the chapter.**

 **But Two hints that will help you a lot. The character I based Max on is from an animated series and shares the same 1st name as him. Leave a review saying who you think it is, or your opinion about whether or not doing this would be a waste of time and whether or not I'm a fucking idiot. Or don't, It's not like I wanted you to review anyway Baka!**

 **Ha Ha Ha, Tsundere-ness aside this story is gonna be both cannon but slightly non-cannon events. At least half of the arks Max and co go through won't go along the same path or even involve teams RWBY or JNPR. There certainly will be plenty of arks where Max and the original cast overlap and even outside of those arks team RWBY/JNPR will at the very least be mentioned or referenced. I just want to make Max have an interesting story but not take away from the original cast's development and I am willing to bend canon a bit to do that.**

 **And ever so often I will cut away from max to focus on a different character, you know, world-building and stuff.**

 **If anyone wants to be a Beta for me just PM me or something. Sorry this is so long, I just want to keep from having many AN's in my fic.**

 **Well, now that that's over, See you later my loyal readers.**


	7. Chapter 7: MacRein Pain part 1

**Less than a Hero, More than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 7**

* * *

Max was tapping his foot anxiously as the eighteen-wheeler moved along the road. He wasn't the only one who heard the two grunts anxious blabbering. Several of his coworkers were fidgeting in their seats, the more senior members of the group looking more subdued than anything else.

Despite the anxiousness brought about the dark cargo space was relatively quiet with any stray coughs or mumbles being drowned out by the sound of the freeway.

Max glared in the direction he believed the front of the truck was, hoping to burn holes into his "bosses'" head through the thick metal.

' _That bastard should've told us that he was working under the goddamn mafia,'_ Max internally growled. His glare lightened a little and his shoulders slumped slightly.

'Then again if I wasn't wasting time with the voice and arrived on time then I would've known hours ago. At least that way I could have mentally prepared myself.'

Max had known that his new job wouldn't be completely legal the moment Juniors asked him and the others to work for him.

The bar looked shady as hell inside and out. The job offer was given to him right after he left an underground fighting ring which operated under said bar. And any normal run-of-the-mill bar would never need so many bodyguards.

Knowing what he was doing wasn't the issue. Actually doing it however was very taxing on the silverette's mind.

"I told you that you should get out while you still could!" Tanuki half-whispered, half-shouted at the nervous teen.

Max's head snapped toward the older man's direction waiting for him to continue.

"But because you had to be so stubborn you've pretty much sent yourself to hell on Remnant," This caught Max's attention, "This isn't like the movies, those dumb comics you read or even The Cage. These people will eat you up and spit you out in a second, no _fancy_ weapon is going to change that." Max's eyes narrowed at the subtle jab toward Alpha.

"It's way too late for you to leave, because if you do then you'll die, no if ands or buts about it."

Max was quiet for a few seconds, before speaking up, "You said that I'll die if I leave right," Max said in monotone, "Then I guess I'm staying right here." The boy's words caused Tanuki's eye to twitch.

"*Sigh* Alright, but don't say I didn't warn you."

The rest of the trip to the meeting point was spent in uncomfortable silence. The clock said that it had only been twenty minutes but it felt like a decade to the newer recruits.

The eighteen-wheeler took many sharp turns before slowing to a halt. The doors opened quickly, forcing some to shield their eyes from the harsh light that entered. Max, wary of what could happen, was one of the last few to exit.

His eyes quickly adjusted, revealing a massive bunker-like warehouse. A heavy gate could be heard closing somewhere from behind. Stacks upon stacks of crates lined the walls. Dozens of armed men dressed the same as the men from the bar stood threateningly in front of the grunts.

The door to an office opened slowly, revealing MacRein with a false welcoming smile on his face. At the same time, Junior left the trunk, the grunts making way for him to speak with the Mafia boss.

"It is a delight to see that you are keeping your end of the bargain, Mr. Xiong. Ten Thirty, not a minute before or after, your punctuality is _astounding_ as always." MacRein's words would've seemed congratulatory to the untrained ear, but the more experienced bodyguards and the bartender himself heard the underlining mocking in them.

"And with such a large stock of workers to our disposal. We will make ample use of them during your assignment." the aged man walked back to his office, beckoning Junior to follow him. Junior simply huffed in response and told the grunts to line up before walking away obediently.

A grunt with a machine gun strapped to his back, Junior's second in command, was given a set of coordinates and a sheet of paper.

"You are to head to this location and liberate the materials, weapons, and funds from our business associate's warehouse." The grunts were starting to feel more anxious than before, with Max almost rhythmically tapping his foot on the concrete.

"Should you fail, be spotted or leave behind any of the items listed your company will face severe repercussions from the MacRein shipping company including financial reparations, private imprisonment, and embezzlement of personal and company-owned properties. Be mindful of Grimm and hunters during the retrieval and transport of listed items."

The man finished reciting the instructions, the not-so-secret meaning behind…certain aspects of them started to sink in.

' _Damn it! What have I gotten myself in to!? No…no…just stay calm…calm.'_ A sharp breath escaped the silver-haired boy's mouth and the tapping ceased after a few seconds.

' _I might want to bring Alpha along for this.'_

* * *

 **[Quest Received Please Check the Menu]**

 **[Quest: MacRein Pain]**

 **[Primary objective: Successfully retrieve items from the MacRein's business associate]**

 **[Challenges: Steal at least 10,000 lien from the warehouse, Defeat 15 Grimm]**

 **[Primary Reward: 5,000 exp, Possible raise, Mafia Advocate 1]**

 **[Challenge Reward 1: 12,000 lien, +1 Dexterity, Scam Adjacent 2 | Challenge Reward 2: 1,000 lien, 1,000 exp]**

* * *

' _Definitely going to bring Alpha along.'_

Max heard someone walking toward him and turned around to see Tanuki hold his phone and staring at him.

"Something wrong?" Max asked the blonde man bluntly.

"Oh…I just wanted to tell you about this joke going around that I figure you of all people would enjoy. I mean it's pretty old by now but…"

"Is that _fucking_ _rat_ dragging that delicious looking slice of pepperoni?" Max's eyes became intense as he stared at the image.

"Yeah…what's the problem, it's _just_ pizz-"

"Complete that sentence and it _will_ stab you." Tanuki just stayed silent before slowly tapping the x button on the image.

"Well considering that you're already this deep down into the rabbit hole let's get to the trucks already."

At least twenty grunts had to stay behind so that the trucks would have enough space to transport them along with the goods. The final one was about to be closed off with three people walking toward it. Max and Tanuki jumped into the cargo hold as it closed, pushing the other people aside. The older of the duo smiled unapologetically at their coworkers as the doors closed.

The cargo lurched as the eighteen-wheeler began to move. It seemed as if the drivers were in a hurry, as they ran over several bumps and cracks without slowing down.

Max held the Xiong Sword in his left hand with his right hovering over The Pocket, having put Alpha inside an hour beforehand.

The truck lurched to a stop and the door opened, showing an entrance to an empty water well. Each bodyguard descended down a ladder into an empty sewage system.

Claw marks and large paw-prints lined the beaten ground. A trio of mobsters led the small crowd of workers down the tunnel.

The sound of shuffling feet and dripping water echoed throughout the waterway. The grunts moved forward briskly, wanting to leave as soon as possible. Max lagged behind the bunch slightly having seen a shadow move across one of the side tunnels.

The boy was about to play it off as the light, or lack thereof, playing tricks on him before he smelt a bloody sent charging from behind him. Max spun around and brought his blade up, having barely blocked a set of jaws trying to gnaw his face off.

The other grunts and the mobsters spun around in response, flashlights locked on Max's attacker.

Max grunted as he pushed the beast away, his eyes finally adjusted to the darkness. Several rays of light focused on a black figure with a stubby bone plated head and two clawed hind legs. Roaring came from both sides other the group, identical monsters racing to their location.

"CREAPS!" A man shouted with wide frantic eyes as he drew his sword. Tanuki and the other bar workers following suit. The tallest of the mobsters cursed under his breath as he and his partners pulled out assault rifles.

The creep that Max pushed away regained its balance and charged at it's would-be-dinner. The silverette smacked the Grimm's head away repeatedly until it hit a wall, giving Max the opportunity to stab it's exposed underbelly.

The boy rolled out of the way as a small horde of creeps charged toward his fellow grunts. However, some targeted Max having seen their brethren slaughtered by him.

Several tried to pounce on Max, being cut in half or stabbed it the mouth in response. The boy backpedaled away from an older creep who tried to bite his leg off. He kicked it in the face and smacked it away with his sword, sending the Grimm onto it's back.

Before he could finish the downed beast off one of the slightly larger creeps jumped on him from the side, the force knocking Max to the ground and sending his sword flying.

Max tried to get up but found himself holding the creep's head away from him. Max slowly inched back feeling the handle of his sword. He prepared to stab his current attacker in the maw but found himself fending off a second creep from the left.

The Grimm on his left had its jaws clenched tightly on the flat side of Max's sword, cracks forming from the middle. As the silverette's grip faltered and his blade finally snapped the two beasts were riddled with bullets.

Max got to his feet as his attackers dissolved, silently feeling relieved for the mobsters' presence before his spite for them returned.

Max heard a shout of pain and clanging metal coming from behind him. He turned around the see one of his coworkers on the ground against a wall with his arm held tightly inside of a creep's jaws, the sent of iron filling the air. Max discarded his broken sword and snatched a replacement off the ground and bisected the creep's torso, ending its assault on the poor man's arm.

Max, having learned how easy a Xiong sword can break between a Grimm's jaws, prepared to pull Alpha out of 'The Pocket' before a mobster shouted, "All clear!" stopping Max in his tracks.

 **[Combat Ended 13 {Juvenile Creeps]}, 3 {Adult Creeps} Defeated: 1735 exp gained, 1735 lien gained, +1 str]**

The grunts and the mobsters reconvened, assessing the situation. Five out of the thirty-two grunts were injured beyond function and two had their heads bitten off. The rest of the up and running grunts had some sort of scar bruise or damage to their clothes, Max, Tanuki and two others being exceptions. The mobsters were uninjured if a little winded.

The bar workers were forced to press on, the injured being helped to the truck and the corpses being left to rot. After nearly fifteen minutes they arrived at a pair of doors that led to the surface. The mobsters inclined their heads at Max and Tanuki, them being at the front of the group.

Picking up the silent message the two used their swords to break the lock on the doors and push them open. They exited the water tunnel into a large field with high grass and a small warehouse looming above it. A few dozen men wearing strange insignia were hanging around the main path and on watchtowers adjacent to it.

"Unfortunately our business partner's storage area was compromised a while back. One of the men hanging around here has a master key, your job is to find that key and give us cover. We'll take care of everything else." One of the mobsters instructed the group of grunts before running off.

One of the veteran grunts, Junior's second in command, said "Didn't you hear the guy? Fan out and look for those keys!" With that order, the bar workers raced off in different directions

Max was crouched low surveying the area for the key holder or at the very least someone to knock out. The boy suspected something was wrong. The orders to find the key along with the strange faction occupying the warehouse hinted at a possible battle. Max saw it fit to take out any extra enemies just in case.

The silverette listened closely for any footsteps when he caught the tell-tale scent of alcohol. Max looked around for any of his coworkers, making sure they wouldn't see him pull out Alpha as that would obviously raise questions. A fact that made Max mentally face-palm at trying to pull his true weapon out in the waterway.

Max revealed Alpha with the shaft retracted. He snuck up on the inebriated watchmen and smacked his head with the broad side of his spear, sending him to the floor. Max saw the man begin to get up and hit him on the head a few times until the man lost consciousness.

Max dug around the man's pockets, finding nothing of value except a few lien and a large pocketknife. Max growled in slight frustration and was about to storm off but noticed the symbol on the man's coat.

It was a white angular skull shape with three lines on each side and a red border. For some reason, it looked familiar to Max despite having never had the opportunity to see it up close before.

Max's musings were interrupted by a message from Tanuki

 _TANUKEY: FOUND THE KEY WHERE R U_

Max quickly ran to the warehouse to find his coworkers standing next to a bound and gagged man with the doors to the warehouse slowly being pulled open.

The place had an ancient but oddly artificial sent to it. Pure white cobwebs covered every visible crack and the windows, despite the glaring lights outside, allowed little to no light inside.

The grunts surveyed the warehouse looking for any possible trapdoors or secret levers. Max was in the far left of the area when he saw a latch on the floor. He jimmied it open with Alpha, revealing a trapdoor with light shining out of it.

The silverette beckoned his fellow bodyguards over to him, some looking extremely relieved to be able to leave soon. Before they could jump down the trapdoor dozens of heavy footsteps came from behind them.

Several men wearing the odd skull symbol and carrying guns were gathered around the grunts. At the same time, one of MacRein's trucks crashed through the wall. This wasn't what shocked Max, however. The real surprise came from seeing the black and blue skull on the side of said truck, causing his face to turn white in fear.

MacRein didn't hire them to retrieve something from his "business associates".

He hired them to steal from a rival crime family.

* * *

 ** _Happy Dustmas-day_**

 _ **Date: December 25th**_

 _Max had just returned from the nearby grocery store, being me with the sight of Junior's decked out in red and green lights with miniature Santas hung in the windows._

 _Max looked disinterestedly at his inebriated coworkers singing badly to Jingle Bell Rock while descending to the basement._

 _Max had a slightly more forlorn expression on his face than usual. Reaching his private storeroom he set his small bag next to a box of half-eaten pizza._

 _He reached for the box, chomping his extra large pepperoni down at the rate of a normal human…or faunus, an extremely odd occurrence._

 _Slowly finishing the dinner off max brought out a small cake and a box of matches from his bag. His hand reached the final item, a candle with the number fifteen on it._

 _He carefully placed the now lit candle on the cake and took a deep breath. He let it linger for a few seconds with his eyes closed before blowing the candle out, taking away all the light in his room._

 _The silverette looked out the window for about a minute before drifting off to a dreamless sleep._

 **Merry early Christmas everyone, I just couldn't resist releasing this chapter early.**


	8. Chapter 8: MacRein Pain part 2

**Less Than a Hero, More Than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 8**

* * *

Most of the grunts were regaining their footing, having to leap out of the way of their employer's truck. Men with various types of guns wearing MacRein's symbol spilled out through the gaping hole in the wall. The end of the truck opened, over a dozen more men exiting the cargo hold.

Despite the sheer number of MacRein's men that were present, the soldiers wearing the blue skulls outnumbered them by a fair amount. The soldiers had little in terms of artillery, but their armor more than made up for it.

The grunts stood in silence as the rival gangs glared at each other, clutching their weapons anxiously. A black-haired man sauntered to the front of his group breaking the silence, smirking at the MacRein's group triumphantly.

"Well, well, well. Look what the rat dragged in," The man said mockingly, "I was wondering how long it would take for you lot to show up." Max and his coworker's eyes widened in realization while MacRein's men glared at the soldier.

"You shouldn't have betrayed us MacTrash. After all, what goes around comes around."

"Betrayed you!?" a woman with bright red hair questioned angrily, "You demanded far too much of the payment from an operation _you_ almost ruined. Your group was a liability and needed to be cut loose!"

"We had a deal!"

"A deal that you couldn't hold your end of!"

The black-haired man growled and pulled out his weapons, an assault rifle and a machete. "Enough of this!" he spat out, "Kill the MacTrash, the one with the most heads gets paid triple!" The soldiers, rallied by the thought of more lien in their pockets charged in guns blazing, forcing MacRein's men to scatter

The man noticed the grunts who were trying to stay hidden and huffed in annoyance. "And kill the scum over there while you're at it," he ordered nonchalantly not seeing them as a threat. About a dozen soldiers went toward the grunts who tried to find cover.

Max and Tanuki, being the fastest of the bunch were able to find cover behind large stacks of crates. One grunt stumbled upon Max's hiding spot and tried to duck beside him, but several shots impacted his body, making blood fly out of his forehead and chest. Max saw several shots zoom past and heard the soldiers' cruel laughs.

One of them, too hopped up on his kill-high didn't notice Max charging at him with a left hook. The boy's blow landed, causing the man to turn and keeping his shot from hitting some poor man's head. The boy got off a few more punches, but the soldier wasn't nearly as fragile as the people in The Cage.

The man elbowed the silverette in the stomach, causing him to stagger. He then hit the boy's already blackened eye with the butt of his gun. When Max regained his vision he was greeted with the man aiming his rifle at him. But before the man could pull the trigger a red sword pierced through his stomach. Small drops of blood splattered onto Max's uniform.

The soldier fell to the ground, revealing Tanuki his blade covered with blood. Another soldier noticed his murdered comrade and aimed his shotgun at the two grunts. The duo noticed this and jumped out of the way, the shot barely missing Max's ears.

Tanuki pulled out a pistol and fired at the soldier's head breaking through his visor and going through his head. The blonde noticed Max's faraway look and smacked him on the head lightly. Max was shaken out of his daze and glared at Tanuki, the man only staring grimly at him.

"Welcome to the real world," Tanuki said before running away with his sword poised to kill. Max found more cover behind a tall wooden pallet and peeked around it to see the decimated bodies of several grunts with a man holding an SMG standing in the middle. He finished reloading his weapon and prepared to start mowing down his "prey".

Max climbed on top of the wooden pallet and jumped off, drop-kicking the soldier and landing roughly on his back. The boy quickly sprung to his feet and bashed the man's head in repeatedly with the end of his sword's handle.

The boy heard one of MacRein's higher-ups tell his men to secure the lien in the basement. Max, remembering his challenge, quickly followed.

The boy looked for any potential spectators before opening the now broken hatch and entering the basement. Max slowly crept forward, paying close attention to not be seen or heard. But suddenly a loud bang echoed through the tunnel, causing Max to increase his pace forward. Several more bangs echoed through the tunnel forcing Max to cover his very sensitive ears.

When the bangs ended Max could make out several different shouts and grunts. Max finally arrived to see people on the ground riddled with bullets. One of MacRein's men was trying to fend off one of the soldiers while a second one stayed behind with a cocky smirk on his face.

Max, having picked up a stray assault rifle, carefully tried to aim at the latter of the soldiers and catch the other one by surprise. However, the shot went wide and both men's attention snapped to the silverette. The first soldier knocked out his opponent and went to fight the boy, but was stopped by his partner.

"Let me kill this one. Teach the brat a lesson about provoking his elders." The man pulled out a machete and ran toward Max, thinking that he would be easy pickings. But he was surprised when the boy was able to block his attack and even push him back a little.

The soldier grunted in annoyance and kicked the boy back into a wall. The man let out an onslaught of slashes, with Max barely being able to block each one.

Eventually, Max noticed his sword starting to crack and lashed out at the soldier's head, barely grazing his cheek. The man was enraged at this action and slashed Max, who was trying to leap away, across the stomach, leaving a shallow but still painful cut.

Max was then punched in the jaw, sending him to the ground. The boy turned away from the man clutching his stomach and fiddling with his hands.

"Sorry kid, it's nothing personal but business is business. If anything, you sentenced yourself to death by siding with the traitors, so don't blame me for what's about to happen."

Max turned his head around and glared at the soldier, holding a clear-colored bottle with liquid inside. He turned around and threw some of the substance into the man's eyes, revealing it to be rubbing alcohol. The soldier dropped his weapon and covered his burning eyes, giving Max just enough time to pull Alpha from 'The Pocket' and stab the man's chest.

The soldier's arms fell limp as he coughed up blood, the life-giving liquid getting on Max's hands. The man fell to the ground as his comrade charged toward the silver-haired boy axe in hand, his eyes screaming vengeance. Max not knowing what else to do fired his weapon, hoping it would hit the man's face.

The ice round hit his shoulder but still severed its purpose by knocking the seething soldier to the ground. The boy knew that if the man was able to tell his superiors what he looked like then he would never be able to go outside and would be hunted by the crime family for killing one of their members.

Max resolved himself to stab Alpha into the man's face, cringing at the sight of the soldier's mutilated skull. The silverette's eyes gained a faraway look before he shook himself back to attention.

The boy looked over at the open crate of lien and back at the stirring mafia member. He yanked what he assumed was about 15,000 lien from the crate and shook the man awake.

* * *

Max was told to help hoist the crate out of the warehouse once the chaos died down.

The boy and his "supervisor" had exited the basement to the sight of corpses littering the floor. Most of the bodies were the soldiers, Cobalts they called themselves. However, over two-thirds of Junior's men were killed in the crossfire and a large chunk of MacRein's forces that had attended laid dead on the cold concrete floor.

Max helped hoist the crate of lien into the cargo hold and watched anxiously as they placed several more crates into the truck. Drugs, dust, Guns, illegal explosives. The sheer amount of weaponry would be enough to destroy a small town in the wrong hands. And in the wrong hands they were. Max didn't want to imagine the things MacRein and his cronies could…no would do with all that firepower.

The boy tried to make his way toward the shipping trucks, eager to return to Junior's bar for once but was stopped by a rough hand landing on his shoulder. He turned around to see one of MacRein's men with an Icy Look on his face.

"You didn't snatch anything from the basement did you?" The man asked, closely inspecting the boy in from of him.

Max inwardly cringed at the question. It would make sense that they would keep a close eye on a stranger who was in close proximity of their "earnings".

Trying to keep his face neutral Max told the man, "I didn't take anything, I'm not stupid enough to steal from you guys."

However, Max's answer wasn't good enough.

"Hands in the air brat, and don't try anything." Max angrily complied as the man patted him down, inwardly sweating when he reached inside his pockets. Max braced himself to be attacked, but was pleasantly surprised when the man came out empty-handed.

The mobster withdrew slowly, inspecting Max for any trickery. The man paused for a second before jabbing Max in the face. Max blindsided by the sudden blow could only grab his cheek and glare at the mobster.

"Hmm, No aura. All right brat you're free to go." The silverette was quickly nudged in the direction of the trucks. Growling in slight agitation, Max sat down in the cargo hold next to Tanuki.

Tanuki wasn't quite in perfect condition, his hair tousled and his suit cut up. Max was more beat up than Tanuki, but not by much, a fact that mildly surprised the sandy blonde.

"I'm surprised you came out of there with nothing broken. Good job, kiddo." Max curtly nodded and slouched against the wall, hoping to sleep through the whole ride back to Junior's.

 **[Quest Completed, Please Check Menu]**

' _Motherfucker.'_ Max mentally complained, just wanting some sleep. However, the slight humming in the back of his brain would persist until he officially completes the quest. He learned that the hard way on a particularly rough day at 'The Cage'.

The boy looked over at Tanuki who appeared to be blankly staring into space. He quirked an eyebrow at his…associate's odd behavior before opening 'The Menu'

 **[Quest: MacRein Pain]**

 **[Primary Objective (Complete), Challenge 1 (Complete), Challenge 2 (Complete)]**

 **[LEVEL UP!]**

 **[Level 13 (2023/4000) - Level 14 (4023/5000)]**

 **[HP: 442/560 - 442/590 | SP: 279/470 - 279/500]**

 **[Strength: 34 - 35 | Vitality: 34 - 36 | Constitution: 29 - 31 | Agility: 38 - 39 | Dexterity: 37 - 38 | LOCKED ]**

 **[Lien: $19,265 - $47,265]**

 **[AP: 0 -4]**

 **[Achievements Earned: Breaking and Entering 2, Hit and Run 2, Mafia Advocate 1, Enter the Underground 4, Creep Killer 1, Murderer 1 ]**

* * *

Max eyed his bloody sleeves after reading the final 'Achievement'. The sight of Alpha stabbing through that man's face hadn't left him. The boy knew that he wouldn't get any sleep that night, the smell of dried blood would keep him up for sure. He spent the rest of the ride to juniors looking at the floor with a blank look in his eyes.

Max absentmindedly chewed on a slice of pizza as he walked to his 'room'. Once the grunts had arrived at MacRein's hideout, the mafia boss greeted them looking at Junior with false sympathy. His pretend mourning quickly replaced by Jubilation at both his "earnings' and the news that his men slew a large part of his rival's forces.

MacRein had granted Junior a silver briefcase and a bottle of expensive looking wine. The bartender and his grunts were briskly escorted back to Vale and were told (threatened) not to say anything about their operation.

Most grunts went to their homes or the nearby clinic. However, the late shift bodyguards and Max accompanied Junior back to the bar.

Said bartender was staring at Max oddly on the ride back.

' _Bastard probably didn't think I'd make it out alive.'_ Max grumbled mentally as he descended to the basement.

He took his usual trip to 'The Cage' which had been ran by one of Junior's higher-ups. There the boy found a few Lien cards, a McRonalds gift card, and a used coupon for a quartersister diagnosis.

Max went into his 'room' throwing his stained suit onto some barrels and changing into some grey sweatpants and a black t-shirt.

The stench from his clothes still found its way into his nose, but he couldn't care less. Max would take them to the laundromat tomorrow. The moment Max pulled the covers over him. he passed out like a light.

He would wake up in a cold sweat only three hours later

 **Chapter End**

* * *

 ** _Maxy Chibi (Kingdom Hearts Edition)_**

 _Max and the author were sitting in a slightly barren Recreational room. A flat-screen TV with a PlayStation 4 was hung on the wall, an oversized key hung next to it._

" _Alright, do you understand now?" the author, Ezra, asked his creation._

" _Yeah, I think so. Basically, this Xeenort guy wants to clone himself 13 times and get the power of…the moon or something?"_

" _It's Xehanort you wolf-headed fuckboi! He's trying to gather the 7 lights and 13 dark-"_

" _Dude, you've explained it like 8 times already. And I've explained how little fucks I give! Just let me go!_

" _I'm not letting you go until you either understand the story or are able to recite Simple and Clean."_

" _Alright then, I'll sing the song! Just chill out!"_

 _Ezra looked expectantly at the wolf faunus, hoping that he wouldn't flop it up like last time._

 _Don't get me wrong, I love you_

 _But does that mean I have to eat your fodder_

" _No!No!NO! DO YOU WANT ME TO PLAY THE SONG AGAIN SO THAT YOU CAN GET IT THROUGH YOUR THICK SKULL!?_

" _Please don't man," the boy pleaded, "It's a beautiful song but you've played it 358 times already! A guy can only handle so much!"_

" _Well too ba-" Ezra was cut off by a copy of himself in an odd black coat with the word HYPE written on his head._

" _Hype? The hell are you doing awak-"_

" _AQUA GOT NORTED!"_

" _I know, I saw the trailers. Why exactly are you awake?"_

" _Kingdom Hearts 3 is coming out In three days dude!"_

" _I am aware of this an…wait three days? THREE DAYS!? SERIOUSLY!?"_

" _I KNOW MAN, WE GOTTA MARATHON BIRTH BY SLEEP LIKE PRONTO!_

 _Ezra and his hype began to argue over whether they should play KH2 or BBS while Max just stared awkwardly at the duo._

" _I don't understand anything that's happening right now."_

" _Me neither," A boy with spiky brown hair, blue eyes, and large yellow shoes said calmly._

" _I love my job, but I haven't understood shit ever since Dream Drop Distance came out."_

 _The boy offered a beer to the stunned silverette, one he gratefully accepted._

* * *

 **Kingdom Hearts 3 is coming out in 3 days and I am hyped! I just had to make a long-ass chibi short about it.**

 **Awesome Video games aside, I have edited some of my previous chapters, fixing grammar and stuff like that (Especially chapter 4 which was a hot mess of a chapter) Nothing plot-wise has changed so you don't have to re-read them if you don't feel like it.**

 **Ezra out!**


	9. Chapter 9: Encounter

**Less Than a Hero, More Than a Gamer**

 **Chapter** **9**

* * *

Max stood at the entrance of Junior's Bar in his newly repaired uniform, absentmindedly clearing the remaining files from his scroll. Thoughts of what to use his newly received "earnings" on occupied the boy's head, an ample distraction from guard duty.

Junior had granted each of the Grunts who were on the MacRein job a bonus, a whopping seven thousand lien. While this wouldn't completely make up for the murders they were forced to witness or the loss of their friends, it would pacify them until the next job came around.

Junior himself was on another hunt for workers at 'The Cage'. Apparently, the loss of his staff didn't phase the man, too many of his men had died or been hospitalized in the past for him to lose sleep over the matter.

Max wasn't too fond of his employer either, finding Junior's general attitude irritating. The only reason he stayed was because the bar was a good enough place to sleep and the paycheck was fairly large.

The boy's train of thought shifted from his annoying boss to his empty stomach. The money Max got from the cage combined with what he stole from MacRein would hold him over if something went wrong, which meant that he had a little breathing room with his bonus.

' _I wonder if I should go to Mama Johns today? Or Large Ceasars? Maybe Pizza Shack?'_

Max's deliberation over his food was cut short by the sound of footsteps drawing closer. The boy looked up to see a well-dressed man with vibrant orange hair, a grey scarf, and a bowler hat and a petite girl with long brown and pink hair in an elaborate white, pink, and brown outfit.

The silverette noticed the odd duo walking toward the door disregarding his presence entirely. Annoyed, Max stood in front of the entrance, causing both to gain an annoyed expression particularly the shorter of the two.

"I'm sorry, but I need to see some IDs before I can let you two in." Max drawled out monotonously.

The orange-haired man merely snorted at the boy's request. "Well, look at you kiddo, wearing the big boy pants now," the man said cheerily causing Max's eye to twitch, "Listen kid, I don't know who you are or why you're getting in my way, but I need you to step aside, now"

Max, irritated by the man's patronizing attitude, squared his shoulders and looked at the orangette straight in the eyes and said, "It's business policy, and if you got a problem with that, then either show me some ID or leave."

However, Max had a little trouble keeping his gaze steady, the same paralyzing feeling he got from MacRein setting throughout his body, making him want to look away.

"Look, I've got a very important meeting with your boss and he would be pretty pissed if someone held me up." The orangette said, inwardly more annoyed at the faunus in front of him.

Max snorted and crossed his arms. "Like I've never heard that one before." To be honest, Max had never heard that before, but considering how shady the man looked it wouldn't surprise the boy if he was lying.

The shorter of the duo finally joined the confrontation, moving in front of the orangette and looking up at Max with a small glare and a firm grip on the parasol held over her shoulder. Max was slightly thrown for a loop by the girl's eyes.

' _Did her eyes just change color?'_ Max thought confused, noticing her eye change from pink to brown, matching its partner.

"Well, I guess we're gonna have to do this the har-" The man began, but was cut off by Junior coming through the entrance.

"Ah, Mr. Roman, It's good to see you," the bartender said amicably, "I hope my newest recruit hasn't been bothering you and your…partner."

"Oh, no not at all my good man," Roman said, ruffling Max's hair, forcing the boy to resist the temptation to pull out Alpha.

"We were just having a friendly little chat. Isn't that right kid?" Roman nudged Max in the shoulder, daring the silverette to say otherwise. He nodded in agreement, not seeing any point in aggravating the orangette further. Junior nodded and sent a Max a warning glance before welcoming Roman and his partner inside.

Roman casually strolled through the entrance, beckoning his multicolored partner to follow him. She complied, but not before taking a few seconds to smirk at Max, the boy responding with a stoic glare.

Max stayed planted at his station until he could no longer hear the others. Flopping into a small folding chair and searched 'The Pocket' wanting to eat his headache away. The boy grumbled when he came up empty, having eaten his last reserve slices of pizza for breakfast.

Lunch Break couldn't come sooner.

* * *

"I didn't notice that this place became a daycare ever since the last time we were here." Roman joked regarding the young bouncer, trying to lighten the mood in his typical sardonic manner.

Junior, who would normally take the orangette's jokes in stride, was not in a mood for them. "Well, if that bat shit crazy boss of yours didn't incinerate my men then I wouldn't be so desperate."

Junior was frustrated by having Roman hire his grunts only for them to die in a week. Had he not been one of Junior's better-paying clients he would have severed all ties he had with the man months ago.

"So how's the whole hiring process coming along? Did ya get a good batch this time around or are they all just cannon fodder…again?" Roman asked with a dry chuckle at the end.

"The last batch was surprisingly decent. Who would have thought that pulling guys from an underground fighting ring would go well." Junior almost sounded proud of his decision. The newest batch from 'The Cage' looked almost as promising as the last one, the man would make a habit of hiring from down there. But not too often, seeing as the stronger ones also brought in larger crowds.

"Ah, the benefits of hiring people who actually know how to fight are surprisingly large, wouldn't you say?" chucked Roman, the riled up bartender nodding in agreement.

Roman and his partner finally arrived at the main bar, Junior taking his usual place behind it. Roman sat his cane on the floor, no one daring to touch it and the multicolored girl immediately hopped on her scroll.

"I'll take a Vacuo Lager and little Neo here will take…" Roman paused to check the incoming message, "An Atlesian Bock with a half a cup of…apple juice in it?" Roman looked curiously at his small partner, said girl looking expectantly at the bartender.

The man complied with both their requests, disgruntled at having to pull out his secret stash of apple juice, Apparently Junior had a strong taste for something other than alcohol.

The girl, now dubbed Neo, practically snatching the sweet beverage from the bartender, gulped down her drink happily. Roman casually sipped at his own cup, trying to figure out the right way to go about his request.

"You said that the new batch of grunts were pretty strong right?"

Junior looked up from the glass he was washing and nodded at the orangette, falling for the bait. "They could handle themselves against a horde of creeps, more than I can say for about half my other men."

Junior hadn't bothered training or strengthening his forces, being a firm believer of quantity over quality. But having a slightly above average workforce with little effort was appealing.

"Not to mention they did a lot better than I thought they would on the last job," Junior continued, "I expected them to be cannon fodder at best or ways to vent for MacRein's men at worst." The absolute disregard of life was a staple for the Falcons, the name MacRein had bestowed upon his organization.

"Sounds like they're pretty impressive," Roman said nonchalantly, too nonchalantly for Junior's tastes.

"What do you want Torchwick?" Roman laughed the bartender's question, wondering when he would see through his paper-thin act.

"Well, because you only sent my...boss and I useless cannon fodder, there's no one left to do the grunt work. So I was hoping you would-"

"No way in hell!" Junior interrupted, "I sent you 52 guys a month ago and now all of them are corpses! Get the fuck ou-"

"Five million lien," said the orangette in a serious tone for the first time that night, immediately shutting the bartender up, "I'm offering you five million lien for thirty of your best men."

' _Five Million!?'_ That was almost double what he offered Junior last time. Junior was skeptical about the reason Roman offered him so much and wary about the potential loss of more useful employees, but his greed won out. Besides, If they didn't come back he could easily just hire some more.

"And you just want thirty?" Junior asked in order to see If he heard Roman correctly.

"No more, no less."

"Well...alright you got a deal. I'll send them to you tomorrow," Junior said after a little mental deliberation.

"That's what I like to hear," said Roman, back to his usual cheery self, "I'll wire the money to you later."

With his business concluded, Roman finished the rest of his during in one gulp and briskly left the bar. However,, his partner lingered behind typing on his scroll.

Junior looked at Neo oddly before she showed him her screen.

" _You might want to hire a few more men after tomorrow_ ," was written on Neo's scroll in multicolored letters.

"What the hell do you mean by that half-pint?" asked Junior rudely

" _Well, let's just say that our boss will make them play a pretty messed up game_ ," Neo typed cryptically. Her mismatched eyes both turned light brown and her face gained a sour expression at the thought of her boss.

Before the bartender could ask what she meant, Neo's image shattered like glass and she disappeared, leaving a wary Junior Xiong.

* * *

 **Several Hours Later**

Max, after his final decision to go to Large Ceasars for dinner, was ushered into the conference room immediately after his return to Juniors. Not wanting a repeat of the assignment from MacRein, he stood near the front of the crowd in order to not miss any information. The boy recognized Tanuki and some of his tougher opponents from 'The Cage' in the crowd along with Junior's lieutenants, but no one else which was odd.

Junior walked into the conference room with a bag of cards in hand. He cleared his throat and said, "You lot have performed exemplary during your time employed at this establishment." many in the crowd knew his words were false, some of them being employed less than two weeks, but let their boss continue without protest.

"As such, I consider you capable enough to be assigned on a..long term mission we've received." Cue murmurs traveling throughout the crowd, some indignant and others confused.

' _What the hell is he playing at?'_ thought Max in hidden agitation.

"I will send your paychecks to your scroll via the app on these cards." Junior fished a card from out of his bag. It was about the size of a credit card, with a digital winky face and a QR code on it. He flipped it over revealing the text 'Maverick' spelled with a weird combination of uppercase and lowercase.

"You will receive a permanent twenty percent pay rise as a further incentive to perform your best on this assignment." Junior felt that paying his higher grunts would be more manageable, seeing as half of them were likely to die if his gut was correct.

Junior had someone pass out the cards before leaving without a word. Max starred suspiciously at Junior's retreating form.

"Something bothering ya Silver Surfer?" Tanuki asked jokingly regarding the silverette's pensive look.

Max groaned in annoyance at his coworker before answering. "Something's off about this whole thing."

Tanuki scoffed and said, "Nah, I don't think he'd send his best guys into the same bullshit we went through two days ago."

"You're right, maybe he's just sending us on a paid vacation to Disneyworld. _Nothing_ to worry about at all." Max grumbled out sarcastically.

Tanuki ignored the boy's tone and patted him on the shoulder, "That's the spirit little buddy. Now if you excuse me, I have a date with a playboy mag." Tanuki added to gross out Max, which succeeded considering the disgusted look on the young faunus's face.

Max went down to the basement once Tanuki was out of sight and held his scroll over the card and typed in the password, the code causing multiple applications to appear.

One was the app for wiring money that Junior mentioned. Another was an app that allowed calling and limited data service through an unknown, most likely illegal, network. The third was an instant messenger operating through the same network.

Once the apps were fully installed Max opened the menu and allocated the ability points (AP) he received from leveling up.

* * *

 **[Strength: 35 » 37 | Vitality: 36 | Constitution: 31 | Agility: 39 » 40 | Dexterity: 38 » 39 | LOCKED ]**

* * *

Feeling a tad bit stronger by his action, the boy retrieved Alpha from 'The Pocket'. He remembered how easily he was overpowered he was back at the warehouse. He most likely would have died had it not been for Tanuki, a thought which lit up a small fire in his chest. Max stabbed Alpha forward with all his might, liking the sound of disrupted air but feeling it could be stronger.

' _I won't be caught off guard like that day…never again!'_

For the rest of the night, Max spun, slashed, and hacked away at the air, training to the point of exhaustion. Should anything go wrong tomorrow he would be prepared, he had to if he wanted to live.

Max sat in the company moving truck alongside his coworkers, gulping down slices of pizza to regain his lost energy. He had been feeling anxious ever since Junior's words at the conference room. He had trained last night both to improve himself and to ease his stress.

He had accomplished his first task, increasing his strength and dexterity by a small margin. But it did nothing to ease his soul, leaving him physically exhausted but kept him lying awake even longer than usual.

His foot was tapping anxiously, the rhythmic movement increasing in tempo as the truck crawled to a stop. The trucks hatch opened slowly, revealing a thick swamp-like area. The few trees that were present had most of their leaves burnt off, the air having the lingering scent of ash. Max's hyper-sensitive nose crinkled in disgust, not enjoying the strange combination of smells.

Junior told his men, the high grunts he dubbed them, to form a straight line near the swamp. Once they all were in position they were approached by five people who would be impossible to miss in a crowd.

The person in front was a woman with short black hair, amber eyes, and a red dress with separated sleeves that were held up by two straps tied around her neck. Flanking her sides were a pale boy wearing a vest with hair a few shades darker than Max's, and a dark-skinned girl with green hair and an olive crop top.

Bringing up the rear and trying to stay as far away from the first three as possible were Roman and Neo. The former was calmly smoking a cigar, and the latter was eating a chocolate bar while occasionally sending glares at the woman in front.

"Greetings," the black-haired woman began, "My name is Cinder Fall, and I will be your employer for the foreseeable future." the woman sized the group up, Max noticing traces of apathy and…amusement?

"I'm sure you all are aware of the…incentive Mr. Xiong has given you," most of the group nodded yes allowing Cinder to continue, "Well I believe that such a substantial reward must be earned rather than given on a whim." the woman had a smirk on her face and her amber eyes seemed to glow, sending a shiver through the grunts' spines.

"So in order to earn your payment, you will be collecting artifacts hidden throughout this swamp. There are only fifteen available so it would be wise for you all to make haste." Cinder's smirk widened at the high grunts' cries of indignation. However, her face soured as one of Junior's larger lieutenants stomped in her direction with rage written on his face.

"Fuck you, you crazy bitch! I don't know who you think you are but If our boss hears about that shit you're pulling then there will be hell to pay!" Silence washed over the area after the man's rant.

Cinder chuckled at the man's outrage and without a word closed the distance between her and the foolish lieutenant faster than the normal eye could see. Her fist, burning with energy, impacted the man's sternum, knocking the air out of his lungs as she knocked him the ground.

The lieutenant's eyes, which were clenched shut out of pain, opened to see Cinder looming over him with a brilliant flame gathering in her palm. The man frantically looked at his coworkers, his eyes pleading for them to help him, but fear had petrified every single one of them.

"Arrogant speck," Cinder muttered before an orange inferno burst from her hand, breaking through the man's meager aura and incinerating him, leaving nothing but ashes and a burnt circle of dirt.

Cinder looked at the grunts as the smoke faded, pleased at the terror on their faces and said, "I was planning on sending the losers back to Junior, but this little display of insubordination has encouraged me to…change the rules up a little." Cinder paused and looked each grunt in the eye.

"Not only will those who return with artifacts be given their payment, but they also earn the right to stay alive." the grunts' eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets at her proclamation, "The losers will not be receiving the same privilege so you'd best get a move on."

Too afraid to protest, the grunts raced into the swamp pushing and shoving each other like their lives depended on it, which they did. Some even pulled out their blades starting a small brawl, the faster members like Max and Tanuki carefully avoiding the fight and heading in opposite directions.

Max made sure he wasn't being watched by any of his coworkers before reaching into 'The Pocket' and pulling out a cartridge of burn dust bullets and loading it into Alpha.

 **[Quest Received, Please Check Menu]**

' _Of fucking course.'_ Max thought bitterly. Another thing to make him stressed out on top of Cinder's stupid death game.

* * *

 **[ Quest: Search for the Fall ]**

 **[ Primary Objective: Find an Artifact and return to Cinder | Reward(s): 10,000 exp, 10,000 lien, Survival ]**

 **[ Challenge 1: Be the first to return | Reward(s): 2,000 exp, 1,000 lien ]**

 **[ Challenge 2: Be one of the first 5 to return | Reward(s): 1,000 exp, 500 lien ]**

* * *

With his goal clear and his resolve strengthened Max closed 'The Menu' and ran deeper into the swamp, using his enhanced senses to navigate.

' _I won't lose your stupid game Fall, bet on it!'_

* * *

Cinder was on top of a tall hill overlooking the swamp holding a large tablet in her hands. The green-haired girl looked over her shoulder with a worried look on her face.

"Is this...really necessary ma'am? They didn't do anything to offend you," the girl said, traces of guilt on her face.

"Oh, I am well aware of that, Emerald," Cinder said with a smile, Emerald not saying anything knowing her mistress would elaborate soon enough.

"You are aware of my...experiences, are you not?" asked Cinder, her subordinate slowly nodding.

"Then you should know that seeing someone else groveling in fear is rather...cathartic." her hand was clenched tightly, making her already pale skin even whiter but the sinister smile on her face never left.

Max was roaming through the swamp, ducked low with a hand over his mouth, looking for anything that would resemble a relic. Occasionally he saw something glimmer on the ground and in the occasional tree only to find cheap decorative coins, obviously put there by Cinder to trip up the more idiotic members of their group.

Max noticed a red light coming from the shore of a particularity deep pond. The boy began to sprint toward the light eager to leave the swamp. However, one of his coworkers, a man with purple hair, who was much closer to the pond had the same idea and grabbed the light revealing a fist-sized orange gem.

Max pulled out Alpha, steadfast on knocking the man out and retrieving his prize, but halted when he saw two glowing pairs of eyes under the water heading toward his coworker.

However, the man was too elated to notice and wasn't able to react fast enough when a black blur flew out of the water. He swiveled toward the noise but was quickly screaming in agony as the blur kept away with his arm in its jaws.

Its body was reptilian with two sets of eyes, massive teeth and bone-like armor covering its entire back and head. It tilted its maw to the air and downed the severed limb and slowly stalked toward its victim.

Max, despite being green in the face, charged at the Grimm before it could reach its prey and swung alpha in a downward arc, forcing it to evade backward. The beast caught sight of its attacker and made an odd croaking sound, before circling its new target, the boy following suit.

The lizard-like creature lunged and the faunus boy, intent to bite his head off. Max reacted appropriately, knocking the grimm sideways with his blade, making a shallow cut in its armored hide.

The savage beast repeated its attack at a much faster speed, causing Max to pull Alpha's trigger, sending a ball of fire dust at the grimm, hitting its side despite Max's abysmal aim.

Max quickly raced toward his still bleeding coworker and snatched the gem from his lifeless hand. He shoved the precious stone in 'The Pocket' and ran toward the exit to the forest. Suddenly something coiled around the boy's ankle, dragging him to the ground.

Max looked back to see the grimm's elongated tail, which he promptly kicked off. He saw the fiendish reptile with its side burnt and leaking thick black ichor pouncing on him and reflexively hit it with the end of Alpha's pole. The grimm was launched onto its back and Max used the opportunity to bring his spear down on its exposed underbelly.

 **[ Combat Complete: 1 { Loch Mini } Defeated | Reward(s): 350 exp, 350 lien ]**

Max, barely noticing the pop-up, ran back to the clearing. It took a solid ten minutes of running until he arrived, noticing Tanuki and two others waiting anxiously. The boy tossed his gem at the gray-haired boy sent to watch them and sat on the branch of a nearby tree.

* * *

 **[Quest: Search for the fall]**

 **[ Primary Objective Complete | Challenge 1 Failed | Challenge 2 Completed ]**

 **[ Reward(s): 11,000 exp, 10,500 lien ]**

 **[LEVEL UP!]**

 **[Level 14 (4373/5000) » Level 16 (4373/7000)]**

 **[HP: 581/590 » 601/610 | SP: 418/500 » 458/540]**

 **[Strength: 37 | Vitality: 36 | Constitution: 31 » 33 | Agility: 40 | Dexterity: 39 | LOCKED]**

 **[Lien: 47,615 » 58,115]**

 **[AP: 0 » 8]**

* * *

Max closed the menu to see the remaining eleven "winners" arrive one by one. Now everyone was waiting for the "losers" who seemed to be lingering in the forest. None of them had the intention to leave the forest to face their almost certain deaths that is until an impatient Cinder arrived in the clearing sending a pillar of fire into the sky. The remaining fifteen trudged into the clearing, hoping that their obedience would convince the ravenette to spare them.

"Well, now that everyone has arrived," Cinder said looking from the grunts to Emerald, "Emerald here can show the winners to their quarters."

The girl in question was standing next to a bullhead, the winners entering the flying vehicle happily. However Max took a second to look back at the losers, a decision he would regret for months to come.

Some of them were crawling away desperately with large glass shards embedded in their limbs, and others were slumped over dead, the shards impaling them in the head. Cinder gathered burning energy in her fingertips and waved her arm, sending a wave of intense fire that burnt the men to ashes.

Max, who was rooted at the entrance, made way for the female pyromancer who took her place at the pilot's seat. The bullhead flew into the morning sky, the lingering aura of death following it to their destination.

* * *

 _ **Maxy Chibi**_

 _Max was (literally) glaring down at Neo at the entrance to Junior's Bar, the small girl returning the glare with equal force._

 _Suddenly Neo slipped into a battle stance with her umbrella in hand and Max reflexively pulled out Alpha causing Roman to freeze up._

" _Uhh…can I talk with my partner for a sec." Roman pulled Neo to a distance he thought was out of earshot._

" _Neo, do you know what this means?!" Neo shook her head causing Roman to develop a tick mark on his forehead._

" _Don't you see it? The character model, the weapon, the fact that he isn't a shadow person, the unnecessarily edgy look on his face!"_

" _I'm standing right here you assholes!" Max's cry of annoyance went ignored as Roman continued._

" _Neo, what we're dealing with is…A MAIN CHARACTER!" Roman said ominously causing Neo's eyes to widen_

' _SACRÉ BLEU!' Neo's special cardboard sign said._

" _His plot armor is too much for you to handle!" Roman warned his small companion._

 _Roman and Neo continued their frenzied discussion, ignoring the wolf-eared boy flipping them off in the background_

 _ **Meanwhile, At the Hall of Super Best Friends (aka Ezra's Room)**_

 _The author was tied to a chair with two shadowy figures looming over him._

" _You can torture my body all you want, I will never give you the spoilers!"_

" _Oh, we have better ways to make you talk." The shadow let out a dark chuckle and pulled out a DVD player and surround sound TV set. The second shadow pulled out a DVD titled Twilight causing Ezra to break out in a cold sweat._

" _W-w-what are you doing?" the shadow ignored Ezra's question and inserted the disk, pressing play_

 _I had never given much thought to how I would die. But dying in the place of someone I love seems..._

" _NNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"_

 _They forced Ezra to watch the infernal tape for days on end but his resolve was unshaken and the shadows did not get the spoilers. Someone found him curled up in a ball in front of his computer, bawling his eyes out._

" _That's not how vampires work, that's not how vampires work, that's not how vampires work…" He chanted like a mantra._

* * *

 **Because of a review (shout out to xhope14x) I will be extending the minimum chapter size from 2,500 words to around 4,000 words give or take. I will also try to upload chapters more constantly (2-3 a month) but it will take some work.**

 **Also to clear up any future confusion…**

"Talk"= Normal

' _Think'_ = Thoughts

 _News_ = Television/Messages

" _Neo"_ = Neo typing

 **GOD** = Higher Being/Menu

 ***BOOM*** = Sounds

 **Some do not apply during Maxy Chibi. Well, I've said my bit. Happy reading!**


	10. Chapter 10: Great Expectations

**Less than a Hero, more than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 10**

* * *

Max nervously sat in the back of Cinder's bullhead, trying to erase the scent of burning flesh from his mind. He snuck a glance at the pyromancer in the cockpit, who had a twisted smile on her face.

The boy could just picture it. Cinder randomly deciding to finish what she started in the forest and burn the rest of them.

A frightful shiver went through his spine. He quickly looked away from the raven-haired woman and accidentally locked eyes with Tanuki who wore a grim expression. Max decided to shift away from the other grunts (and farther out of Cinder's range) and stare out the window.

The city of Vale was almost freakishly colorful in Max's eyes. The central parts were standard, red brick buildings and metal skyscrapers. The suburbs were…suburbs so nothing interesting there, but the outer areas of the city was where things got…weird.

Large parts of the city seemed to be sectioned off by large walls and man-made moats, each section being a very bright, very distinct color. It was as if a rainbow barfed on the city and it was only half cleaned up.

Despite the oddness of it all, Max wouldn't say he hated the view. It was rather cool in his eyes to get a bird's eye view of Vale in all its glory. He saw sure he would've enjoyed it much more if he wasn't within twenty feet of a murderous pyromaniac.

' _Pretty nice view though'_ Max, for a brief second was content.

Sadly all good things must come too and end, and as the ride progressed the colors faded to a dull brown and the streets became more old and cracked.

The occasional huddle of people near flaming oil drums and thugs replaced the crowds roaming the sidewalks. Max didn't recognize any buildings, so he assumed they had traveled to the poor region on the other side of town.

Emerald alerted the grunts that they were touching down causing them to snap to attention. The bullhead descended onto a vacant lot flanked by old apartment complexes.

The grunts lined up in front of Cinder once again once they were out of the flying machine.

"I've sent the location of your new quarters to your scrolls. You have until twelve to arrive, and I hope you are intelligent enough to know what will happen if you are late." with that Cinder flew off, leaving the grunts to their devices.

Max was in no hurry to get to his destination so he decided to find something to eat. Lucky for him he spotted a Mama Johns on a side street. It was rather decrepit, with faded paint and racist graffiti on the walls. It was obvious the executives placed the restaurant there as "a service to those less fortunate" by the CEO to win brownie points with the media, something that happened all the time on earth.

Max was about to walk in when he saw one of his coworkers being confronted by two rough-looking men who noticed the signature outfit of Junior's bar. He overheard a few spiteful words about his boss which urged Max to get out of sight before the men noticed him.

The boy placed his hat, tie, and glasses in 'The Pocket' and put his gray coat over his suit. He walked in and ordered a large pepperoni, making sure to stay away from the thugs harassing his coworker.

An older man with purple hair looked at Max's ears and at the cashier with disgust. "Dirty fuckin' animals," the man muttered at a volume a human wouldn't be able to hear.

"What was that?" the man wasn't bold enough to meet Max's gaze and continued to look at his menu. The cashier, a woman with owl ears made a note to spit in the old man's food before handing Max his pizza with a generic smile and "We hope to see you again".

Max was leaving with his food when he saw the man walking toward him. He pretended to look at the thugs warily before discreetly sticking his foot out. Max took comfort in the man's yelp of pain as he tripped before making his way to the address Cinder sent him.

* * *

Max had to dodge the occasionally scowling passerby, people wearing falcon symbols, and even a rock from some asshole trying to look tough.

He arrived at a large, worn down apartment complex. The interior wasn't all too dirty if a little bit musty. The bottom floor was something like a lobby with couches and coffee tables scattered about.

Max had to cover his nose when he reached the stairs. Apparently, someone decided to buy some beers at the liquor store nearby. It made sense, they needed something to dull the image of their possible fiery deaths. It didn't make it any less annoying though, or any less smelly.

The boy found his room on the fourth and final floor which had his name and the number 11 written on it. It was rather small, with only a twin-sized bed, a small couch, and a flat-screen oddly enough.

' _I guess Cinder thought a TV would be a decent enough apology for threatening to murder us all with a giant ball of fire.'_ thought Max with a scowl.

Nothing looked out of place…except for the multicolored girl channel surfing on his bed.

* * *

Neo was absolutely fucking bored. Cinder-bitch had forced her the watch over the idiots from Junior's bar, and she dragged Roman along with her leaving Neo with no one to talk to…figuratively speaking of course. Dealing with the bunch from Junior's would be too annoying, so she decided to hole up in the least smelly room and watch TV until Roman returned.

It just so happened that said room belonged to a certain gloomy silverette. Max and Neo stared at each other for a moment before Neo silently huffed and went back to surfing channels.

Max considered pushing the small girl out of his room, but his instincts told him that doing so wouldn't be very good for his health. So Max resigned himself to sitting in the chair next to the closet. After a few minutes of silence, Neo scooted closer to Max and held out her scroll with a raised eyebrow.

" _Why don't you smell like cheap booze?"_ Max read, slightly puzzled by the girl's…odd method of communication.

' _Weird…I guess she isn't much of a talker. Then again, who am I to talk.'_

"Why would I smell like cheap booze in the first place?" asked Max.

Neo looked at Max like he had just tried to make a bad joke and typed _"Dude, do you even know your own generation. Teens plus free beer always equals in drunken idiots."_ She of all people would know, having a few…experiences with Roman's stash when she was younger.

Max looked mildly disgusted, "Please, that stuff smells like a cool breeze off of a lake of baby turds," Neo snickered at Max's accidental joke, "And I'd like to keep as many brain cells as possible so I ain't touching that stuff."

" _Huh, I guess you aren't just ears and a tail after all."_ Max didn't know whether to growl at the insult or take the hidden compliment.

" _Actually, I take that back. You can't be all that smart if you're here."_

Max growled and tried to defend himself "It's not like I wanted to be here." that wasn't completely true all things considered, but the boy continued, "I don't have many other options than working here." well, not anymore. Max knew that he was way too deep the moment he met MacRein.

" _Glad to see you aren't just another idiot trying to be tough, the world has way too many of those."_

"Well, I threw a rock at one on my way here so I there's probably one less in the world now." In hindsight, Max shouldn't have thrown the rock back that hard.

Neo looked amused before handing over the remote and loading a game on her phone. After about an hour she received a message which caused her to flip off the bed and walk to the door.

" _Welp, it's been nice wasting time with you Wolf_ _brain_ _, but my ride's here."_ Max read.

"My name's on the door, or can you not read?" spoke Max with some agitation in his voice.

' _At least he has a backbone.'_ Neo thought. She then smirked, _"Well than_ _ **Wolf**_ _ **brain**_ _, I'd suggest not pissing off my bitch of a boss. You saw what she did in the forest."_

Max had witnessed Cinder's power and knew he could have been one of the ones charbroiled by her, but this didn't curb his spite for her attitude or her actions.

"That won't stop me from wanting to bash her over the head," Max grumbled.

Neo chuckled and typed, _"Good luck with doing that Wolf head."_ Neo was only half-joking. She tossed a small black object to Max which he immediately caught. It was his scroll!

Max gaped at the device and then at his pocket, "How the hell did you-" Max looked up to question the small girl, but a loud shattering sound echoed through the room and the girl vanished.

' _What the hell was that?'_ Max knew that no one could enter 'The Pocket' but him, the pat-down at the warehouse proved that. But maybe he was missing something. Maybe he had to consciously make it inaccessible to everyone else? If only that stupid voice had explained his abilities before just throwing him on another planet!

Max knew he had to keep his guard up from now on. First, it was his scroll, what if he let his guard down and someone snatched his money, or Alpha?

With that in mind, Max searched his pockets, which miraculously had nothing else out place. He then opened his scroll seeing if the girl had tampered it with. Everything looked in order but there was a strange image file sent by a blocked number.

He couldn't make out the number but the image was clear as day.

 **N E O** Spelt in bold pink, brown, and white letters, the girl's name Max assumed.

' _Neo, huh?'_ It was an innocent message matching her appearance, but Max could tell that she was dangerous. He would have to be careful if he saw her again.

Suddenly someone fell through his doorway. They smelled like crap.

"WoOooooO! PArTy tIMe!" Max pinched his nose, his breath was horrible.

"Fucking Dammit Tanuki." this was gonna be a reeally long mission.

* * *

It was the morning, Max was on the first floor with a bowl of tasteless cereal. Half the building was getting over their hangovers and the other half was looking for more booze. Suddenly a certain pyromancer sauntered through the door, getting everyone's attention with a medium-sized fire.

"Good morning loyal dogs, I hope you all are enjoying your quarters for the time being," Cinder's not so subtle jab agitated The grunts, but held their respective tongues and let her continue.

"Your first assignment is to acquire as much lien as possible, I care not how you do it, nor who you take from." Those who were not inebriated knew exactly what the woman was implying.

"You have exactly three months to acquire one hundred million lien." their eyes widened and shivers went down many men's spines. Saying that was a lot of money would be like saying guns were a little painful.

"I assume you know the penalty for falling your task or exposing our operation." Cinder continued with fire dancing between her fingers, "Emerald will supervise you for the time being," said girl walked in with a half-lidded stare at the grunts as Cinder left, leaving ashen footprints on the carpet.

Emerald sighed, she didn't want to deal with the grunts for more than a few minutes. She may have sympathized a little with them, but despite them being the "best of Junior's bar", they were far too weak to be of much help in her opinion. However, her mistress had given her an order, and it was her obligation to follow it with her utmost attention.

"There are three banks in this part of the city. Fan out and get as much as you can. We start at eleven tonight, got it?" The grunts nodded slowly, "Good, now just...do whatever I guess. Just don't bother me and you can keep all your fingers."

The grunts complied under threat of dismemberment and left the ground floor to avoid annoying the green-haired thief.

Max was in the backyard cleaning Grimm ichor off of Alpha. He wasn't too focused on his task, working about Cinder's ridiculous goal.

' _A hundred million lien, that's basically ten million dollars! How the hell are we gonna get that much cash!?'_ Max couldn't come up with any real ways to get that much money. He doubted he could get enough money from killing Grimm, which was almost more risky than robbery. And the police would easily find them if the grunts started robbing banks left and right.

' _What are we gonna do?'_

"Feeling antsy Max?" Max's train of thought was stopped by a now sober Tanuki sitting next to him. Max didn't give an answer and Tanuki took his silence as a yes.

"I get it you know, It really sucks going from riveting action to just sitting around in a house." Max felt as if Tanuki wasn't just talking about the transition from working under MacRein to Cinder but ignored it.

"You might want to work on your cardio bud," said Tanuki. Max quirked an eyebrow curiously.

"Well, considering that we're robbing banks now, we probably need to outrun some police. Know what I'm saying?" Tanuki was making sense in Max's mind, a rare occurrence. Max mentally opened 'The Menu', something he found out he could do last night and used the spare AP he got from yesterday's quest.

 **[Strength: 37 | Vitality: 36 » 37 | Constitution: 33 » 36 | Agility: 40 » 44 | Dexterity: 39 | LOCKED]**

Max felt a pulse journey through his body. He looked the same at first glance, but if someone paid close attention they would see his muscles become tenser, leaner, more dense.

The boy hissed and went back to polishing Alpha. He considered telling Tanuki to buzz off, but decided against it, it was the least he could do for the help, intentional or not.

Hours passed. Grunts stretching, praying, and steeling their nerves occupied the rooms. Everyone was preparing for their heists in their own unique ways. Some wished that Cinder had given the mission later in the day so that they would have less time to stress about it.

They had gathered on the ground floor in front of a map of vale hanging on the wall.

Some had gone to Emerald for a plan who said, "Do whatever you want, just don't get caught and bring back the money," and went back to reading a book called 'The First Crusade'.

Junior's second in command decided to take point.

"The moment you are assigned a bank you leave immediately. The one on the southeast is the farthest from the police station. Jadeson, Miles, Argentum, that one's all you." The grunts nodded and left in one of the cars outside while the lieutenant assigned banks to people.

Max looked at his current partners as they drove off. Miles, the driver, was an average-sized man with brown hair and yellow eyes. The boy looked from him to Jadeson, a lanky man with bright green eyes and seaweed colored hair. He was shifting in his seat and his eyes darted around, clearly nervous.

Max anxiously tapped his foot as the bank came into view. Miles passed him and Jadeson black masks with glass eyeholes meant to hide their eyes. Max took it a step further, pushing his tail into his shirt and pulling his hood over his ears.

The grunts exited the car, catching the attention of a few passerbys. Some backpedaled at the sight of their weapons and others looked wary at the possibility of another gang war.

They rushed through the bank's double doors and drew their weapons, Max near the door keeping watch with Miles and Jadeson pointing guns at the tellers.

"Alright, hands up!" Each of the teller's hands immediately shot up into the air, except for a man on the far right, who's hands were fidgeting and out of sight. Miles shot the man in the shoulder and ushered the tellers onto a wall.

Jadeson looked at their stations which had no signs of a silent alarm being pressed. The man bit his lip and discreetly pressed one of the alarms before rejoining his coworkers.

"Did anyone ring the alarms?" Jadeson shook his head, easing Miles' worries.

"Crack the safe and you all get to go home, don't try anything funny!"

While Miles forced the tellers to open the safe Max faintly heard police sirens in the distance, and they were getting louder every second.

* * *

 **[Quest Received, Please Check Menu]**

 **[Quest: Police Interception]**

 **[Primary Objective: Keep the police from catching your coworkers | Reward(s): 10,000 exp, 10,000 lien, +2 Dexterity, Achievements (Wanted 1, Breaking and Entering 3, Hit and Run 3)]**

 **[Challenge: Don't get captured | Reward(s): 2,000 exp, 2,000 lien, Not going to Prison]**

* * *

"We've got company!" Max shouted before rushing outside. Miles cursed and threatened the tellers to speed up.

Max took a deep breath and went around toward the blaring police sirens, four sets in total, filling Alpha's chamber with two small dust crystals, one fire, and one ice.

The police saw a masked figure with a weapon drawn standing in the middle of the street directly in their path to the bank. Their cruisers skidded to a halt, and the officers trained their guns on the figure.

"Stand down!" the figure did not respond, "If you do not stand down then we are authorized to shoot." the figure pointed his spear at the officers causing them to tense. Suddenly the blade split in half and a nozzle came out from the center. A glowing bullet shot toward the officers causing them all to duck.

The bullet landed on a random spot on the ground near the officers, the combination of ice and fire dust making a dense cloud of steam. Max immediately dashed into the cloud, using his nose to find the officers inside it.

Max smacked the first one he found in the head with Alpha's flat side, sending him into his cruiser unconscious. The man's partner caught sight of Max and fired, the bullet barely missing Max's cheek. The masked boy grabbed the officer's hand before he could shoot again, sending bullets into the air. He then repeatedly jabbed the man in the face until he was down.

Max jumped on top a cruiser on his right and kicked an officer in the head knocking them out. The steam had cleared up partially, giving a nearby cop a chance to attack. Max wasn't able to block the first punch but was able to weave around the rest. He ducked low and hit her in the chest with Alpha before knocking her out with the blunt end.

Max saw lights shining behind him and rolled out of the way of a police cruiser about to run him over. The officer cursed, some random thug took out four of his men. He was the only one left.

 _*Click* 10-33, Robbery in progress at 1438 Monty Blvd. We are receiving heavy fire, requesting backup!_

The officer picked up the transceiver, "10-10, this is officer Wylde. Subject is armed and dangerous at a 4.2 threat level. I have four men down, requesting assistance!" Before he could get a response Max jumped onto the hood of his cruiser and shattered the windshield.

Officer Wylde jumped out of his cruiser and shot at Max who ducked under the bullets and hid behind the vehicle.

Max looked around the corner and used the 'Third Eye' on the officer.

 **[Nicholas Wylde: Level 22 | HP: 810/810]**

' _Shit!'_ Max was out of his league, the only safe options were to run away or shoot him. Neither was possible considering the officer's superior strength and his own terrible aim.

His only option was to fight. Max ran from cruiser to cruiser, ducking under the officer's shots. When the gun's sound changed from bangs to clicks Max charged. Wylde tried to reload his pistol but was stopped by the boy charging at him with his spear ready to strike.

Wylde wouldn't have enough time to reload and shoot at the boy, so he threw his gun aside and brought out his baton to block Max's slash. He grunted and pushed the boy back. However, Max kept attacking pushing Wylde back a little

Eventually, one of Max's stabs got through and hit the cop in the stomach. But instead of impaling the officer, a translucent orange barrier wrapped around his skin protecting him.

Max in his shock was forced to kneel by a kick to the shin and then was sent flying by a baton to the face. Wylde then pulled out a taser and shot it at the downed criminal who rolled out of its path and shot to his feet.

Max was now on the defensive, blocking the officer's surprisingly sturdy baton. He evaded to the left and slashed at Wylde's arm before leaping back.

Wylde winced in pain but didn't let up. He surged his Aura and ran at Max with his baton raised high. The boy wasn't fast enough to react and found himself being smacked around by the officer.

Max was dazed and hurting. He tried to raise Alpha to defend himself but the officer knocked him to the ground unable to move.

' _Come on! Get up! Get up, you stupid idiot!'_ Max screamed at himself. His arms and legs twitched and squirmed as he tried to stand.

Max saw the officer walking toward him and doubled his efforts. Using as much energy he could muster he pulled Alpha's trigger and fired, hoping his shot would hit. The cop was sent to his knees when an ice bullet hit his leg. His aura shattered the moment it hit. The last thing the officer saw before losing consciousness was the criminal's knee flying toward his face.

Max stumbled to his knees and pulled up his mask panting. His cheeks were bruised, his right eye was black, and his lip was busted. But Max couldn't keep himself from feeling a little happy.

* * *

 **[Combat Complete: 4 {Police Officers} defeated, 1 {Aura Officer} defeated | Reward(s): 2500 exp, 2,000 lien]**

 **[Quest: Police Interception]**

 **[Primary Objective: Complete| Challenge: Complete]**

 **[Reward(s): 12,000 exp, 12,000 lien, +2 Dex]**

 **[LEVEL UP!]**

 **[Level 16 (4373/7000) » Level 18 (3873/9000)]**

 **[HP: 71/620 » 71/670 | SP: 54/570 » 54/620]**

 **[Strength: 37 » 40 | Vitality: 37 » 40 | Constitution: 36 » 39 | Agility: 44 » 47 | Dexterity: 39 » 44 | LOCKED]**

 **[Lien: $58,115 » $72,115]**

 **[AP: 0 » 8]**

* * *

Max felt a small rush of energy and power that quickly vanished. He was incredibly close to being unconscious or maybe worse. He downed the final slice of pepperoni in 'The pocket' before resting on his hands. He was ready to call it a night.

*Twit* The boy's ears shot up.

Max heard struggling and shouting from the bank. Shouldn't Miles and Jadeson be done collecting the money? Max groaned and got Alpha off the ground. The night wasn't over yet.

"Why the hell did you sell us out Jadeson!?" Miles shouted at the traitorous grunt. Right after Max had left to deal with the police Jadeson had leaped at him screaming obscenities. They were parrying each other's blades, neither side giving an inch.

"You know why! I've been at Junior's for over two years now and you waltz in and steal my promotion! TO HELL WITH ALL OF YOU CAGE RATS! I WON'T BE OVERSHADOWED BY SOME BRUTE AND A TALKING MUTT!"

"You wanna repeat that." A calm young voice said from behind him. Jadeson swerved around just in time to see Max swing his spear at him like a baseball bat.

* * *

"You're one helluva kid Argentum." Miles had finished loading the money and an unconscious, tied up Jadeson into the truck when he saw the unconscious figures of five police officers lying on the street, one of which was the well-known Officer Nick Wylde.

Max wasn't able to respond to the praise, as he had fallen asleep the moment he hit the car seat. Miles sighed and drove off. He had some money to deposit.

By the end of the night, Max and co. had collected around eight hundred thousand lien. Added to the "earnings" from the other banks, they had collected roughly two million nine thousand lien that night, only a fraction of Cinder's goal.

The news was abuzz with talks of a rising crime syndicate "desecrating" Vale which was technically accurate. Banks and popular places of business were ramping up their security. Emerald had told the grunts to lie low for a few weeks. This, compounded with how difficult it was to get such a small fraction of the money, made their goal even farther and more impossible.

But they would do their best to push forward. They had to if they wanted to live.

* * *

 _ **Maxy Chibi**_

 _Max was in the kitchen scouring the fridge for anything remotely resembling food. The pizza place nearby had been ransacked by giant turtle people yesterday and every other fast food place nearby tasted like old skunk ass._

" _Hey everybody! I just got a bunch of cute chicks for us!" Everyone turned to Tanuki who had burst through the door with an excited grin, Including Max._

 _Tanuki ran out the door and quickly returned with a medium-sized box. Everyone looked at it oddly. Suddenly the box burst open and a torrent of yellow flew out._

 _When the dust settled a flock of baby chickens stood on the floor chirping happily. Some stared at the flock incredulously, some felt like they got cucked, and some thought they were the most adorable thing ever._

 _Max crouched low and let one chick walk onto his palm, looking into its small black eyes. The chick chirped and hopped around Max's palm. Max thought the display was adorable but his more primal side had other thoughts._

' _So hungry.' Max suddenly saw a fried chicken leg hopping around in the chick's place. He looked down and saw the same thing happen the other chicks snuggling with his coworkers._

 _Max's eyes became pinpricks, and he unknowingly licked his lips. All the chicks snapped toward's max's hungry savage gaze before glaring._

 _*Chirp Chirp* (This canine-human is trying to devour Morty! Quickly my brethren, we must defend our brother in arms)_

" _Soo Hungry…why I could just-WHAT THE FUCK!?" Max looked up to see a tidal wave of baby chicks coming toward him. He panicked and tried to run away, but the juvenile flock poultry was just too strong._

 _*CHIRP!* (VIVE LA R_ _É_ _VOLUTION!)_

 _ **Two Hours later**_

 _Max was being pulled high into the air by his jacket by angry baby chickens with an agitated expression. After he was at a considerable height they dropped him and flew off into the distance._

 _He landed with a cartoonish squeak. He blew a feather out of his mouth and laid on the ground._

" _At least today can't get any worse." Oh, how Murphy's Law was a bitch. An adult female chicken walked up to Max and turned her backside at him._

" _No, No, NO, NO! NOOOOOO!" The chicken launched a raw egg at the fallen faunus._

" _Ugh, I hate raw eggs."_

 _*BAKAW* (Boom boom motherfucker!)_

 **So I'm planning on making an intro for this story and I'd like to hear your suggestions about what song I should use. Also, Tell me what you think of the fight scenes and stuff because there will be plenty more and I want to know how to make them better.**

 **That's all from me folks. Thank you for reading.**


	11. Chapter 11: The First Dive

**Less than a Hero, More than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 11**

 **Reminder, I** **'m planning to make an "opening" for this book and I'm asking for recommendations for which song to use for it. So review or pm me if you have any suggestions.**

* * *

It was a peaceful night. Few shops were open because of the holidays. The sidewalks were caked with snow and the civilians were bundled up in their coats. No one was in a hurry to get inside though. Snow was rare in the city of Vale, even around Dustmas time. This was, in fact, the first real snowfall in the past three years and the people wanted to savor it.

"Get outta the way!" A loud voice broke through the calm street.

A family on the sidewalk turned around and saw a large truck racing toward them. The father quickly tackled his wife and daughter out of the truck's path, most likely saving their lives.

The truck was swerving left and right as it went down the street, almost running into several more people and a few cars. It ran over a fire hydrant causing a geyser of cold water to rain on the sidewalk and street. A group of police cars followed after the reckless truck, several officers shooting at the people inside.

"Shit! Argentum, stop crashing into shit or we're going to get caught!" A brunette grunt yelled at the driver while ducking bullets. He glared at the boy before reloading his rifle and returning fire.

"Hey, don't pin this on me Jonah! I didn't ask to be the getaway driver." Max swerved to avoid wreaking into a cafe. His hands trembled on the steering wheel as he tried to regain control.

"You either drive or you shoot, and you shoot like a blind person! You'd probably hit one of us before hitting them!" Tanuki shouted before smirking. He had hit one of the cops driving right between the eyes. The other cruisers had to get out of the way as the car spun out of control.

"And like you could shoot better than me!" He said right as he bumped into a tree.

"I could have taken a few more out already if, I had a better weapon! Like-I don't know-a fucking shotgun spear!"

"I wouldn't let you even touch Alpha in a billion years! Let alone shoot it!" Max said almost running over a small boy. Why was driving so damn hard!?

"Alright then _Master Shooter_ , gimme the wheel and _you_ can shoot them!" Max hastily complied and picked up Alpha before pulling down his mask. He ducked under a shot that nicked the tip of his ear.

Max heard a deafening boom which was followed by screeching tires and a metallic crash. "I took out another one, but we're out of grenades!" Miles said with a grimace.

Max pulled up his hood before reloading Alpha with ice rounds. He took a deep breath and pointed it at the grunts. He clenched his spear tightly and fired a shard of ice, which hit one cruiser's grille and expanded. The car was knocked off course but quickly got back on track.

Jonah reloaded once again and aimed at one of the police's tires, blowing it and slowing the car down. "All right, that's five down!" he cheered. He quickly ran out of ammo as he shot at one of the remaining three uselessly, "Dammit that was my last round!"

It was up to Max and Miles to finish the job.

Max lined up another shot, this time hitting one of their car hoods and blocking their view with a tall clump of ice. He fired again blinded the car completely with a shot at its windshield. One more down and out.

Miles shot out one of the cruiser's engines with a semi-automatic stopping it in front of the final cruiser. The officers inside decided that they would take a more direct approach and floored it.

The cops pulled up to the truck as Miles was reloading and rammed it. The impact jostled the grunts, and the truck swerved a little. The cops slowed down and chucked a black ball into the truck's shot-out back window. A thick, smelly cloud of gas came out of the ball and filled the grunt's lungs. Everyone began coughing and wheezing. Tanuki struggled to keep the car on the road between his watery eyes and the green smoke obscuring his vision.

Max burst through the window on the car's roof and gulped in as much air as he could. He climbed on top to escape the painful green smoke and was forced to duck under a policeman's gunfire. The boy dodged a few more shots before reaching for Alpha and blindly firing at the street.

The car drifted around the large spires of ice created on the street. They were lagging far behind the grunts but were quickly catching up. Max swore and closed his eyes.

' _One, Two, Three, Four...'_ Max had mentally counted to fourteen until he calmed down. He aimed Alpha at the driver's head and fired. The bullet covered the windshield in ice which forced the cruiser to pull over.

The chase was over, and not a moment too soon. The tear gas had cleared allowing Tanuki some semblance of vision. He pressed the brakes and took a hard left to avoid crashing into a building.

The car went at a fast but steady pace and the grunts sighed in relief. Their relief was short-lived as Max had informed them that he heard helicopter blades and sirens. They were faint but were getting louder every second.

"We gotta get to the drop point!" Tanuki pushed the pedal as hard as he could and spent to the coordinates Emerald gave them.

* * *

The police circled around the grunts' damaged car, which had stopped in the middle of an intersection. A news chopper hovered in the air with the camera zoomed in. The channels most well-known reporter, Lisa Lavender was on the scene. It was rare that a robbery of this magnitude happened so the channel had to make sure this got out as fast as possible.

One of the younger officers looked at his commander warily. His teeth were grit and his hand tightened around his gun. The commander glared at the damaged vehicle, which was completely empty save for a paper drawing of a middle finger.

The grunts were in a van a dozen blocks away, watching a live stream of the scene.

"Ten million lien, impressive for a bunch of drunks and a kid," Emerald said counting the last of the lien cards. The grunts barely reacted, being used to her and Cinder's little jabs.

Without a word, the green-haired thief drove the grunts back to their "home". She was pleased that they were able to decently help with her mistress's goal. Meanwhile, the grunts were starting to miss working directly under Junior.

* * *

 _Unfortunately, the vehicle was found empty with no signs of the perpetrators to use for investigation. Eyewitness accounts confirm the perpetrators as the same group responsible for the series of spontaneous robberies three weeks ago and the injury of many good officers of Vale._

 _Meanwhile, Senator Valorum says that while he has been damaged by the robbery of such a large sum of his money, he assures the people of Vale that he will continue to do his best for his constituents._

Tanuki snorted and flicked off the TV. "What a load of shit. That guy offered us the money and his maid to save his own slimy ass."

Max never understood politicians and doubted that he ever would. He just hoped that they all weren't as spineless as that Valorum guy. Or maybe he did, it would make reaching Cinder's ridiculous goal a lot easier…

Well, it would if Emerald didn't order them not to go after another Councilman which made sense in all honesty. Like the banks, the council members would up their security to fight back any would-be thieves. The cops plastered their uniforms all over the media so it would make moving around a lot harder too.

It was annoying to have to stop their momentum to figure out where to steal from next. Max slumped onto his bed and opened the menu once again.

* * *

 **[Quest: Senator Shakedown]**

 **[Primary Objective: Steal at least 5 million lien from a Vale Councilman (Complete) | Challenge: Take out two police cruisers (Complete)]**

 **[Reward(s): 15,000 exp, 20,000 lien, [LOCKED]]**

 **[LEVEL UP!]**

 **[Level 18 (4,568/9,000)** **»** **Level 19 *** **Ω** *** (9,999/10,000)]**

 **[Strength: 42 | Vitality: 40 | Constitution: 39 | Agility: 51 | Dexterity: 46 | LOCKED]**

 **[AP: 0** **»** **4]**

 **[Lien: $71,565** **»** **$91,565]**

* * *

'What the hell?' Max did the math in his head. He definitely had enough exp to level up. What the hell was that weird symbol?

 **HELLO AGAIN!**

Max felt a familiar presence in the back of his mind and groaned. "What do you want this time Voice?"

 **AWWW, YOU SOUND LIKE YOU** **'** **RE HAPPY TO SEE** **…** **HEAR FROM ME! YOU REALLY ARE MY FRIEND!**

Max rolled his eyes and said, "I know how this is going to go. You give me some vague answer, tell me some lame joke, and tell me to do something before leaving. So come on O Voice the great and powerful, share your _godly_ wisdom with me."

 **WELL MR. SNARK, I SHOWED UP PLANNING TO GIVE YOU A LITTLE KNOWLEDGE AND MAYBE MAKE YOU A LITTLE STRONGER BUT I CAN GO IF MY PRESENCE OFFENDS YOU**

Max shot up in his bed, his ears raised high in curiosity. "What knowledge?"

 **SO YOU ARE INTERESTED. WELL FOR ONE MY NAME IS EZ, I HAVE TWO DOGS, I HATE THE WORD ONO-**

The voice felt Max's intense deadpan. It decided not to further agitate its charge and get to the point.

 **YOU** **'** **VE OBVIOUSLY NOTICED THAT YOU HAVEN'T LEVELED UP ALONG THE SYMBOL NEXT TO THE EXP BAR. WELL THAT SIGNIFIES THAT YOU ARE** **'** **SEALED** **'** **, MEANING THAT YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO LEVEL UP OR INCREASE YOUR STATS**

"What!? Seriously!? What the fuck is this shi-" Max stopped and counted in his head, reaching nineteen before calming down, "Why the hell am I sealed? Did I break the _cosmic rules_ or something?"

 **ACTUALLY, THIS IS TO MAKE SURE YOU AREN** **'** **T BREAKING THE RULES. I** **'** **VE GO OTHER STUFF TO DO BESIDES MONITOR YOU ALL DAY, AND I NEED TO MAKE SURE YOU HAVEN** **'** **T JUST BEEN KILLING BEOWOLVES THIS WHOLE TIME. CAN** **'** **T HAVE ANYONE CHEATING MY SYSTEM** **…** **AGAIN.**

"Wait, why the hell would I just fight beowolves and nothing else for like…six weeks? It sounds like a waste of time."

 **OH, YOU** **'** **D BE SURPRISED. ANYWAY, WHAT THIS DIVE SERVES TO DO IS TO CHECK YOUR STRENGTH AND REWARD YOU FOR GETTING PAST IT.**

"So what do I have to do for this dive, jump out of a plane?" Max hoped this wasn't the case but wouldn't be too surprised if it was.

 **NAH, I** **'** **M NOT THAT MUCH OF AN ASSHOLE. WHEN YOU GO TO SLEEP YOU** **'** **LL HAVE THE CHOICE TO TAKE THE DIVE. YOU** **'** **LL GO INTO A DREAM AND BE GIVEN A FEW CHALLENGES. FINISH ONE OF THEM AND YOU GET A REWARD, FAIL THE CHALLENGE AND YOU GET A PENALTY.**

Max latched onto the last part, "What penalty?"

 **OH, NOTHING YOU WON** **'** **T BE ABLE TO GET PAST.**

Max was still suspicious, but the voice left before he could ask anything else. He laid back and closed his eyes, feeling himself drift off.

 **[Take the Dive?]**

 **[Yes/No]**

The corners of Max's vision were foggy and the world outside his window was an icy blue. This must've been his dream world. Max tapped yes and laid back down waiting for something to happen

 **I CALLED IT A DIVE FOR A REASON**

Max blinked and felt the bed disappear underneath him. He was floating for a few seconds before being sucked into a dark void and sent into a free fall.

There was nothing but black for miles, a nonexistent wind pushed blew at him as he flailed around. He desperately tried to right himself midair and straighten out his body. He succeeded, easing his panic a bit, but speeding up his fall.

Max saw a small spot of light coming toward him which he assumed was the ground. He braced himself for a painful landing, but the strangest thing happened. Suddenly Max felt himself steadily lose speed and flipping right side up. He gently fell onto an extremely comfortable surface. The world registered around him and Max found himself sitting on a couch in a modern-styled living room in front of a large flat screen.

 _For those just now joining in the annual purge is set to begin in one hour. As of twelve o'clock tonight all crimes and felonies will be made legal for twelve hours, including murder._

 _That_ _'_ _s all for tonight folks, have a safe purge._

' _I_ _'_ _m going to have to go out there am I?_ _'_ Max already knew the answer.

"What's wrong?" Max turned around to see a brunette woman looking at him worriedly. He stared at her for a while, unmoving. Max turned around and smacked himself, leaving a red handprint. He looked back and saw the woman go up in smoke.

' _I guess this really is one of my dreams_ _…'_ Max clenched his eyes shut and took a deep breath before heading to the door. No use in hanging around, he had a challenge to do.

Once Max was outside he tried to leave the balcony but was blocked by an invisible barrier. A fantasy-like tune rung in his ears before a stack of pamphlets appeared in his hand. There were five in total, colored orange, red, green, blue, and purple respectively and had glowing titles.

Suddenly the pamphlets flew out of Max's hand and became glowing quest panels

* * *

 **[Orange: Strength]**

 **[Tonight is the purge and the people want a good old-fashioned battle royale. Travel to the nearby community center to join the frenzy. You** **'** **ll have to fight the toughest of the tough to win your life. No weapons allowed. This challenge is recommended for those who can hit the hardest]**

 **[Recommended Strength: 50]**

 **[Reward(s): Seal removed, +10 Strength, Herculean Strength book vol.1]**

* * *

' _That_ _'_ _s a hard pass._ _'_ Max remembered how much trouble he had a few weeks ago during the robbery. The silverette knew he wasn't strong enough or skilled enough to handle that, especially without Alpha.

* * *

 **[Red: Vitality]**

 **[A deranged scientist released a detrimental bio-agent throughout the city. You must fight your way through the broken metropolis to find the cure while your body slowly breaks down. This challenge is recommended for the most resilient and sturdy people]**

 **[Recommended Vitality: 50]**

 **[Reward(s): Seal Removed, +10 Vitality, Unwavering Body Brochure vol.1]**

* * *

This one was also a no brainer. Even if Max had the right stats he wasn't dumb enough to be put under the influence of a bioweapon by choice.

* * *

 **[Green: Constitution]**

 **[You planned on waiting the night out at home letting the savages kill themselves off from the safety of your couch. But when the purge was a mere hour from being over, a mob of desperate hobos gathered in front of your house to take it over. Fight them off until the purge is over. This challenge is recommended for those who don** **'** **t tire quickly]**

 **[Recommended Constitution: 50]**

 **[Reward(s): Seal Removed, +10 Constitution, Second Wind Writings vol.1]**

* * *

Max took this challenge under consideration. His opponents were hobos so he wouldn't have too much trouble taking them down. It would be extremely tiring considering how high the recommended stat was, but there weren't any rules against using Alpha so he could just cut them all down. But it would be smart to look at the others first.

* * *

 **[Blue: Agility]**

 **[There is only one way to exit it dream world, and that is through the Animo** **'** **s Portal. You have one hour to get to the other side of the city and enter it before it closes. This challenge is recommended for those with the fastest legs and the quickest reflexes.]**

 **[Recommended Agility: 50]**

 **[Reward(s): Seal Removed, +10 Agility, Hyper-Response Readings vol.1]**

 **[Purple: Dexterity]**

 **[Thousands of people wanted to escape the city before all hell broke loose. You were no exception, but it seems like you were too late. Now, armed with nothing but a gun and your mind, you must travel to the city limits to escape the war-ravaged city. This challenge is recommended for those with the best aim and the craftiest hands.]**

 **[Recommended Dexterity: 50]**

 **[Reward(s): Seal Removed, +10 Dexterity, Bullet Time Tome vol.1]**

 **[Warning, Failure to complete one of the challenges could resort in the challenger falling into a coma]**

* * *

"What!?" Max screamed in shock.

 **I TOLD YOU THERE WAS GOING TO BE A PENALTY**

"You lying piece of shit! You never said anything about me going into a fucking coma!"

 **HEY, I DIDN** **'** **T LIE ABOUT A THING. YOU NEVER ASKED WHAT THE PENALTY WAS.**

"You said the penalty was something I could get past! How the fuck it a coma something I can get past!?"

 **I** **'** **LL HAVE YOU KNOW THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE WAKE UP FROM COMAS NOWADAYS**

"*Grrrrrrr*"

… **WELL AT LEAST YOU HAVE SOME EXTRA MOTIVATION. LIFE-THREATENING EVENTS ARE KNOWN TO INCREASE WORK ETHIC, HEH HEH** **…**

"*GRRRRR*"

 **I** **'** **M JUST** **…** **GONNA GO NOW. TRY NOT TO** **…** **YOU KNOW DIE** **…** **K BYE!**

"WAIT-" Max didn't bother calling out to the voice (he refused to call it by name). He felt it's presence leave, and it made a point of not being around when Max needed it. He balled his fists and took a few deep breaths to curb his anger.

The stakes were much higher than just breaking the seal now. Max would have to be extra careful when choosing a challenge.

The Purple challenge was a definite no-no. Max wanted to avoid the combat centered ones and the only one that didn't imply fighting was mandatory was the Blue mission. The purple made it obvious the gun would be a big factor of his survival, which didn't sound like a good thing considering Max's…less than good aim.

The only one he was actually prepared for was the blue mission. Max threw away the other four pamphlets and tapped Accept on the Agility pamphlet.

The moment he accepted the mission a blue pillar of light broke through the clouds and hit a spot near what Max assumed was the center of the city.

*Rumble Rumble*

Before Max could take off everything started shaking. Max was knocked off balance, car alarms went off simultaneously, buildings started to rumble dangerously, and the sky lit up a brilliant blue.

And then suddenly the shaking stopped. Max got to his feet and looked around.

' _An earthquake? Is it a part of the challenge? Or does it mean that someone is messing with my body in the real world?'_ Max hummed thoughtfully before breaking out into a sprint.

' _Either way, I gotta get out of here, fast!'_ He made his way to the pillar, jumping fences and over car wreaks in a beeline to his destination.

It was easy enough and Max had managed to avoid any crazies on the streets so far. Despite this, Max felt a foreboding feeling crawl up his spine. Small tremors went through the made-up city, worsening Max's bad feeling each time. Something was coming, and max didn't want to be there when it came.

So he kept running, slowly but surely getting closer to his freedom

Max looked at the timer in the corner of his vision next to, 'Forty minutes left' at this rate he would be able to make it out with ten minutes to spare. He was running at a good pace before another tremor happened, sending Max to the ground.

All of a sudden glowing cracks started spreading from the middle of the street Max was one. Sections of the road crumbled and fell out of the world. Inch by inch more concrete disappeared into some kind of void underneath the world. Cars, corpses and other objects quickly followed, falling into the void at the absence of the ground below them.

The cracks were slowly moving toward Max, who quickly scrambled away with panic written on his face.

The tremors stopped once again at the same time the road stopped disappearing. Max looked back panting at the destroyed road and the buildings on the other side of it. Even with a running start, he wouldn't be able to get near the roofs of those buildings.

' _What to do…'_ Max noticed the door to a fairly tall service building in the alley he was in. He cursed when the door refused to open no matter how hard he pulled.

' _Maybe…'_ Max rummaged through his pockets hoping he still had his power in the dream world. He smirked triumphantly and pulled out his trusty spear. It seems like the voice wasn't completely heartless.

The silverette hacked and stabbed the wooden door until it was nothing but splinters. Max rushed inside and quickly found the stairs, racing up them as fast a possible. After several flights of stairs, he was on the roof. He looked back curiously and was stunned at what he saw.

The outer limits of the city had disappeared, leaving only the void. Destroyed Buildings floated in the air free from gravity. The blue void and the sky together made it so that Max couldn't tell where one ended and the other began. Max's faunus ears heard make-believe people screaming in the distance.

The small earthquakes had become more frequent now, and with each one, more of the world was sucked up and the void came closer and closer.

Max gulped and turned away. If he didn't cross the gap, he would get sucked into the void and it would be game over. Max put a determined look on his face and go into a runner's pose. He shot forward and hesitated for a brief moment jumped off the building.

He sailed through the air flailing his arms, hoping he wouldn't fail and fall into the void. Luckily, he was just high enough to reach the building and landed on its roof with a roll.

Max slowly got up and dusted himself off, thanking all those nights spent in 'The Cage' for making him stronger. The buildings in front of him were around the same height as the one he was on or could be scaled with a little extra strength. He ran, jumping from rooftop to rooftop, using the service ladders to get to the higher ones.

It was it. He was a block away from the skyscraper the beacon was on top of. Another powerful tremor hit.

' _Damn it, not again!'_ Max was able to stay on his feet this time but just barely. He looked for any signs of the groundbreaking below him. He was pleased when none appeared near him.

However, when he looked toward the skyscraper he cursed once again. The void had swallowed the entrance of the building, leaving it floating in the center of the city with no way to get inside.

Max looked at the few surviving buildings and debated jumping off one of them to the entrance.

*Crash* *Shatter*

Max looked at the skyscraper to see a large section of glass near the top being shattered by a wreaking ball.

The boy steeled himself and climbed the crane the steel ball belonged to.

"Don't look down, don't look down, don't look down," Max repeated like a broken record on his way up.

The wind rushed past Max's face as he stood on top of the crane. It would be a rather short run if he when full speed, but the height made the crane's arm look a mile long.

Another small tremor when through the world. The void was catching up fast, merely two blocks away.

It was now or never.

Max ran across the crane's arm at full speed, his heart pounding harder with each step.

"Don't look down, don't look down, don't look down!" Max's heart sped up even more. What if he missed a step, what if another tremor hit, what if he couldn't jump high enough? These thoughts went through Max like a whirlwind.

Max's drive to live overcame his fear, so when he reached the end of the crane he jumped, without a moment's hesitation. He closed his eyes and let gravity take him, hoping for the best. His stomach hit smooth stone, and he slid across the surface slightly.

Max looked up and sighed in relief, he made it. Not wanting to risk anything else going wrong, Max ran up the building's staircase. He didn't know why, but Max knew that he needed to get to the roof. Max didn't bother looking at the timer, he knew was almost out of time.

*Shatter*

Another strong tremor went through the world, but Max barely cared. He saw the door up ahead; he was almost free! The stairs tilted dangerously. The edges began to break off and fall into the void but Max pressed on.

' _Just a bit further!'_ Max reached the door and burst through it, and not a moment too soon. The stairs had fell into the void the second Max reached the roof. The boy looked over the edge as the large chunk of stone fell into the void.

It had consumed everything. No buildings floating in the air, no scattered debris, no fearful screams, nothing. The skyscraper was the only thing left, and the void would soon consume it. As would Max if he didn't escape.

' _One minute left'_ Max scanned the roof. It was very wide, like a helipad or a large pool deck.

"But no portal…" Max didn't understand, the beacon was right there but no portal in sight.

*Badum*

Max felt something pulsing in 'The Pocket' he reached inside and pulled out Alpha which had an eerie blue glow on it, similar to the beacon.

"Maybe…" Max walked closer to the beacon, causing Alpha to glow brighter and brighter and become a small sun. He was directly in front of the beacon now. He spun Alpha in his hands until its blade was aimed at the ground and stabbed downwards. Silver cracks emerged from the point of impact and the ground vanished from under the boy.

Max began falling and immediately panicked, thinking he had doomed himself to the void, but this wasn't the case.

Below him was a massive swirl of silver energy with floating platforms of stone nearby. 'The portal' Max realized. Max dive-bombed the portal, eager to finally wake up. Before he could fully enter time seemed to slow down and everything went quiet. Max inwardly panicked, had he run out of time or something?

"Hey." A quiet voice said from Max's left. He quickly turned his head to look at where the voice had come from. He caught sight of a dark silhouette standing on the air. It looked to be the shape of a teenage boy, and Max could make out what appeared to be a hoodie on its form.

"See ya." The shadowed boy said, barely raising his voice. He turned on his heel and walked away before shattering like glass.

Time sped back up and the portal once again roared with energy. Max clenched his eyes shut once he felt to portal consume him and curled into a ball.

Silence.

Max tentatively opened one of his eyes. Complete darkness, once again.

* * *

 **[Seal Challenge(Blue) Complete]**

 **[Reward(s): Seal Removed, +10 Agility, Hyper-Response Readings vol.1]**

 **[LEVEL UP!]**

 **[Level 19 (9,999/10,000) » Level 20 (568/11,500)]**

 **[HP: 680/680 » 690/690 | SP: 356/630 » 356/640]**

 **[Strength: 42 | Vitality: 40 | Constitution: 39 | Agility: 51 » 61 | Dexterity: 46 | LOCKED]**

 **[AP: 4 » 8]**

* * *

Max sighed in relief, it was over. Max's vision slowly faded to black as something pulled him up. Max had a feeling he would wake up in the morning but didn't care. He planned to sleep for an entire day, an entirely deserved reward in Max's mind.

Hopefully, his dreams wouldn't involve any more life-threatening stakes.

* * *

 _Maxy Chibi_

 _ **The "Real" Red Challenge**_

" _What in the hell…" when Max took the dive he expected a test of strength or endurance, not…this!_

 _The world was colorful, extremely colorful. Mushrooms every color of the rainbow decorated the area. Everything was pixilated in 8-Bit except for Max_

 _Speaking of Max…_

 _He was incredibly grumpy with what clothes the challenge decided to give him. He was wearing red and blue overalls, slightly oversized shoes and a red cap with the letter M written proudly on the front._

 _The angry boy saw the challenge marker a long way ahead. Golden coins, sentient plants and weird turtle monsters obstructed his path. I was gonna be a long trip._

" _Ugh, LETS A GO!" Max shouted uncharacteristically. He slapped a hand over his mouth._

' _That wasn't what I meant to say.'_

 _ **22 (Dream) Hours Later**_

" _Thank you Maxio, but the princess is in another castle."_

" _SERIOUSLY! THIS IS THE FIFTH FUCKING TIME! DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY BLOCKS I'VE JUMPED ON!? HOW MANY TURTLE SHELLS I'VE BEEN HIT WITH!? WHAT THE FLYING FUCK!"_

" _Sorry Maxio, the princess is going to be in three other castles."_

" _THAT'S IT! FUCK THIS! JUST GIVE ME THE GREEN CHALLENGE, AT LEAST IN THAT ONE I GET TO USE A SWORD!"_

* * *

 **Well, we've finally got to the part of the story that I planned. I honestly had this whole Dive idea before I even began chapter 5. Things are gonna spice up a but so buckle up. Second reminder, still asking for suggestions for "Intro Songs" so don't be afraid to give yours, I will stop taking suggestions on March 25.**

 **K Bye.**


	12. Chapter 0,2: Respite

**Łêş§ ţhăņ à Hēřø, Môŕę ťhąń ä Ģåmêŕ**

 **Chapter 0.2 - Respite**

 **Earth: 2009, December 25th**

 _A young boy, no older than 10, sat on the flat roof of a small rust-colored house. He took in a deep sniff of crisp wintery air, feeling refreshed by the sensation of it filling his lungs._

' _The air is so much nicer out here than back home.'_

 _The boy looked at the stars. The clouds had moved on an hour ago leaving behind a clear back sky covered with millions of glowing lanterns. The city had too much smog to make out more than the occasional satellite, so this was a nice change of pace._

" _Hey Kiddo," the boy heard from behind him. He whipped around to see a long-haired woman with a red scarf on holding a pitcher of juice._

" _You were supposed to be in bed ten minutes ago. Besides it's freezing out here, you'll catch a cold!" the woman scolded._

" _Can't I stay out here for a little longer?" pleaded the boy, giving the woman the closest thing he could get to puppy dog eyes._

 _The woman hid a smirk behind her scarf and slumped her shoulders in a show of false surrender._

" _Alright you can stay up..." the boy almost began to pump his fist, "...If you can give me a decent reason," but stiffened and tried to come up with a half-decent answer._

" _Well...it can be a birthday present?" the boy said unsurely._

" _You're literally wearing your birthday present," she pointed at the blue hoodie hanging loosely off the boy's shoulders._

" _Then it can be a second present."_

" _You ate that already."_

" _Third?"_

" _I put in in your suitcase before coming up here. And don't even say fourth because we agreed on the three present limit."_

"Dammit... _,", The woman was about to scold him for his language, but saw the sadness hidden in his eyes and palmed her face. She was getting too soft on this brat._

" _Alright, alright. You can stay up for ten more minutes, but then it's straight to bed."_

 _The boy pumped his fist with a grin, "Thanks, Auntie!"_

 _The woman smiled at the boy's giddy expression, "No problem kiddo," She walked back downstairs, briefly turning back to look at her young charge, looking up at the stars with a bittersweet smile._

* * *

" _Can't I stay just a little longer?" the boy pleaded._

 _The woman sighed, he had been asking the same question over and over and it was starting to annoy her. "We've already talked about this. I'm barely able to feed myself as it is, and your parents said to bring you home ASAP. I had to bargain with them for you to say this long."_

" _I can bring in some extra money shoveling snow, and it's not like it matters to them when I get back."_

" _They're your parents, kiddo, don't you miss them?"_

" _Nope," he said instantly._

The woman pursed her lips and gave her nephew a shoulder hug, " _Well, I'm a hundred percent sure_ _ **they**_ _miss_ _ **you**_ _. I bet they're setting up a welcome party for you right now." she ended with a smile that almost looked real._

" _You don't know that." the boy had a sour look on his face. He looked at his aunt with a not-so-little amount of skepticism. the boy looked like he had something else to say but shook his head._

" _G'night auntie" the boy pulled the covers over him, rolling the fabric around his body like a puppy of sorts._

 _The woman gently rubbed her nephew's back until his light breathing turned into snores. She smiled and went to her room, turning the lights as she left._

" _Goodnight...Max."_


	13. Opening 1

**Because there are weirdly no English Covers of this song, it was up to me to change the translated lyrics up a bit to make it sound more…song-y. But I still recommend listening to the actual song while reading. Let me know what you think about it.**

 **Opening 1:** **Hello Sleepwalkers-Hyakkiyakou (Bleach Brave Souls Opening)**

The opening starts on a still shot of Earth Max in front of a gray background. Then it changes to Max when he first got to Remnant, then to him wearing his uniform from Juniors, and then him swinging Alpha while wearing a silver jacket over his uniform.

The background gets a little darker as a slightly older Max shows up wearing a trenchcoat holding a longer version of Alpha. Jumbled letters appear as the background turns completely black, and Max appears with a silver glow covering him and glowing blue eyes.

Max disappears and the background glitches before the jumbled letters rearrange themselves into the title card

 **LESS THAN A HERO, MORE THAN A GAMER**

 **{The ghosts of our past are quiet at last ever since that fateful day}**

A quick shot of Max, Neo, and Roman standing in front of a blue sky flashed on-screen, before quickly being replaced by the three standing side by side with grim looks on their faces, with the background turning dark red. In a flash, the three, along with a boy with white hair wearing an odd belt, were running across the rooftops at sunset.

 **{And right next to them, vanished the monster and the hero}**

The camera panned up to see Neo sitting in a white room with her eyes frantically shifting between pink, brown, and white, before clenching her eyes shut with a grimace.

 **{We've fought long and hard, it was a rough start, We've grown up a lot, we almost found our way }**

Max was shown with an empty stare, before growling and waving away a shadow sneaking up behind him.

A slightly shorter Roman was falling with his eyes narrowed in determination holding a bag of food and money, missing his signature hat and cane.

Roman, Max, and Neo were standing in a warehouse with their faces shadowed and smiles on their faces.

 **{But still to this day we still have a long road ahead of us}**

Max was hunched over with his arm bleeding, looking at the back of a hooded figure wearing a dark jacket with very long pistols strapped to his back.

A silver mask with white lines on it and an electronic display of a smile appeared.

 **{The Creatures resting in this world have been roused from their restless sleep}**

One by one pictures of people wearing MacRein's uniform appear on screen before showing all of them standing aside their boss, who had red energy circling his arms.

 **{Not even the greatest minds can fight back, right now is the time, for us to rise and go}**

People standing in pitch black, most notably Emerald, Mercury, and Adam, were circled around Cinder who was partially covered in shadows.

A wall of flame parts to reveal Cinder who seems to mouth the last few lines

 **{Once more Night falls and out comes the ghosts and shadows of that day}**

A quick flash of Alpha transforming appears.

Max is standing in the middle of the street and the masked figure appears in a burst of smoke. Max slashes at the figure, who evades and sends Max spiraling down the street with a gravity dust shot.

Max rights himself midair and sees the figure appear behind him in a burst of speed with his pistols at the ready. Max stabs at the figure with Alpha which kicks up a torrent of dust, obscuring them from view.

 **{I see someone out the window, I can't see their face though}**

Max is walking aside Neo and Roman with a small smile on his face, but suddenly Neo and Roman disappear and Max is surrounded by darkness.

The silhouette of a young boy walks past Max and is then cut down in a burst of light.

 **{I hope, that some way, some day, The children will forget this tragedy}**

Junior and his posse appear brandishing regulation swords.

A giant Three headed Grimm rampages through the forest

Tanuki is crouched low wearing a dark grin on his face with yellow sparks dancing around his from

 **{And the summer will end as everything is forgotten}**

Max is atop a pile of rubble using Alpha to prop himself up.

Cinder appears in a burst of flame once again, moving closer to the camera.

Max raises Alpha high and silver energy bursts out from his hands and bathes the screen.

 **Author: Team Dimension8**

 **I apologize that this isn't an actual chapter. I just really wanted to get this out because; A) I didn't want to oversaturate Chapter 12 by putting this at the beginning (because then everyone would probably skip it) and B) Writer's block is a bitch and whatever cosmic entity thought it up deserves to get shot.**

 **Regardless, I guarantee that the real Chapter 12 will be uploaded near the end of the month. Just probably not between the 26** **th** **and 28** **th** **because Marvel.**

 **Think each new opening from here on out as the start of the Next "Volume" of the story if that makes sense.**

 **Well that's all from me, See ya!**


	14. Chapter 12: Rewards

**Less than a Hero, More than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 12**

*Groan*

Max woke up with half of his body hanging off the bed and a line of drool going down his chin. He slowly opened his eyes and looked through his window. It was ridiculously bright outside. He groaned again and nuzzled against his pillow.

' _I'm not in the mood for this crap..._ '

Max felt himself drifting away when suddenly one of his oh so precious coworkers decided to bang against the door so hard the hinges shook.

"What the-!?" Max jumped and accidentally slipped out of bed onto the itchy carpet, hitting his head on the way down.

"HEY MAX, WAKE THE FUCK UP!" Tanuki barked from the hallway, "ITS ALREADY PAST NOON, GET YOUR LIFE TOGETHER!"

"Ugh," Max slumped on the floor, "I fucking hate that guy."

* * *

Max walked into the common room wearing a muscle shirt and sweatpants, slowly munching on a slice of pizza...again.

Tanuki looked up at the young faunus from his spot on the couch with a shit-eating grin.

"Welcome back to the land of the living," he joked.

Max flipped the blonde off and went into the kitchen to get some juice. He stepped over one of his drunken coworkers and opened the fridge

Tanuki was soon to follow. "Someone's really gotta tell Kelso to lay off the whiskey."

"If you care so much why don't you tell him?" mumbled Max.

"Are you kidding? He's a drunk, but he's damn good with a baseball bat. Not my cup of tea." Tanuki stood next to Max and poured a cup of coffee.

As Max began to leave Tanuki placed his hand on the boy's shoulder, "You know you're lucky Cinder didn't show up during your little nap."

Max shrugged the blonde's hand off, "And why is that?"

"It might have something to do with you being asleep for the past two days."

Max almost dropped his cup, "Two days..." his eyes were wide and his hands were shaking. He had been completely helpless in a house full of thugs for _two whole days_!

"Yup. Miles and I had to break into your room to see If you were still alive," Tanuki flinched at Max's dangerous expression, "Don't worry, we didn't do anything, promise."

Max gave the blonde a tired glare and walked away. He was tired, annoyed, pissed off, and had a crick in his neck, he was not in the mood to deal with Tanuki's crap. There were more important things to spend his energy on.

* * *

While Max was getting dressed, he received a pop-up telling him to check 'The Pocket' for his reward, which led to the boy staring intently at a leather-bound book in his room.

It could barely be considered a book, as it was only a little thicker than a pamphlet, or a children's bedtime story.

The cover was a plain shade of gray with barely noticeable designs near the edges. The only remarkable thing about it was the letters, which glowed a gentle blue.

 **Hyper-Response Readings vol.1: A competent (Enough) guide to enhanced agility**

 **[Recommended: Minimum 20 ft space required]**

"Okay then." Obviously, Max's bedroom would be the worst place to test this out. He threw on his coat and headed downstairs.

"Hey, Max wanna play with us?" Max's hand was on the doorknob when he heard Tanuki call out for him form the common room. The boy turned around and saw six of his coworkers sitting at the table in various states of undress holding cards.

Max cringed and asked, "Why the hell are you playing strip poker?"

Tanuki laughed and replied, "It was Kelso's turn to pick the game…" the statement was self-explanatory.

"Okay…I'm just gonna…go away now. Ya know, leave the nudity to you guys," Max dashed outside and slammed the door shut, "Weirdos…"

It was surprisingly warm outside, especially for December, so thankfully there wasn't snow everywhere.

He went to the center of the building's huge backyard and pulled the book from his pocket. He was about to open it, but suddenly the book started pulsing, sending vibrations of energy through Max's body head to toe.

The silverette quickly dropped the book and backed away. It stopped pulsing after a few seconds. Max eyed it suspiciously as if it would blow up any second. He took a deep breath and slowly reached out for the book, his hand stopping barely an inch above it.

The boy clenched his fists and growled.

' _Quit being a damn baby, It's just a stupid book!'_ Max tried to convince himself. But all the stress, the anxiety that had been building inside him ever since he joined Juniors merry band of mercenaries, the rage caused by that stupid _fucking_ voice, had reached its boiling point.

Max ground his teeth.

The boy couldn't stop thinking of all the things that could go wrong. What if the book exploded? What if one of his coworkers saw him? Then he would be forced to explain his power which would be a shitstorm in and of itself. What if the book didn't do _anything_? What if Cinder appeared behind him and decided he would be better off as ashes!?

Max wanted to punch something.

He wanted to scream, he wanted to smack something with Alpha, he wanted to run, run as far as his legs could take him. But above all else…

…He wanted to blame someone.

He wanted to blame The Voice for bringing him to Remnant, or Junior for hiring him, or Cinder for making him sit around in a dingy old house.

But he couldn't. He asked to be brought to Remnant, he accepted Juniors job offer, he could've run away a long time ago. Everything that's happened was his fault. It was his choices that lead him here. He would have to live with those choices.

' _Too late to turn back now.'_ The boy resolved.

Max picked the book up, glad that it didn't start pulsing again. He gently opened the cover, only to find…

' _What the hell?_ ' Max turned the page, and then the next one, and the one after that, all the way until the end of the book.

It was completely blank.

Was this another of the voice's stupid jokes? Max had ran through a destroyed city, almost fell to his death(several times), and risked falling into a coma, all for some stupid points and a book with nothing in it!

The boy growled and threw the empty book on the floor. "Why am I even surprised?" Max grumbled.

*Ping*

Max straightened up and quirked an eyebrow. That was the sound of a pop-up, but where did it…?

Something glowed in the corner of Max's eye. He turned toward the light and saw the empty book on his bed with a silver panel above it. He inched closer for a better look. The title was displayed proudly in blue lettering. Max tapped the panel and waited for it to change. Nothing happened.

"Maybe…" Max picked up the small book, inadvertently bringing the panel with it. He turned the cover and, just as he suspected, the panel changed.

 **[Skill Tome]**

 **[Skill tomes are rare books gifted by challenges given by the menu system. They contain the power to create new talent skills or modify existing talent skills. To use a skill tome, you must read the entire tome and perform the action instructed at least once to apply the tome.]**

 **[The learned talent skill will usually start at rank 1(Novice). However, the user's natural aptitude, intelligence, and/or existing talent rank may increase the talent rank upon activation]**

 **[Skill Tomes are ranked from C to S+ according to their difficulty to learn, utility, and means of acquisition]**

Max turned the page.

 **[Hyper Response Readings vol.1: Rank C+]**

Max's eye twitched, "Of _course_ getting one of the lowest-ranked books almost gets me killed. How _fantastic!_ "

 **[Prerequisites: 30 Vitality, 30 Constitution, 30 Strength, 50 Agility, 30 Dexterity]**

 **[Disclaimer: I am not to be held responsible for the reader accidentally charging into a wall.]**

 **[The Localization of Aura makes it easy for the common man to perform fantastic feats such as scaling buildings or lifting cars with enough discipline and training. It is a truly vital part of modern society and a valuable tool, particularly upon huntsman and huntresses.]**

 **[However, the practice of hunting Grimm, either out of necessity or for sport, is nothing new. The First Aura activation was first recorded in the 17** **th** **century, and the activation process has been streamlined ever since the 18** **th** **century. However, there are records of man performing absurd feats of strength, speed, and endurance dating back to the 13** **th** **century and the establishment of the four kingdoms]**

 **[Due to the lack of fantastic powers such as Aura, the huntsmen, and huntresses of old had only one tool to aid them in pursuit of such power, the natural stamina and power of the human body. People were taught a certain series of conditioning and meditation techniques to bring out the limits of the mind and body. This series of books is a comprehensive guide for increasing agility and reaction time]**

 **[If you are in possession of this book, then you have completed the first stage of conditioning and are ready to move to the next level]**

 **[Let us begin]**

 **[Fist adopt a standard meditative position]**

Max sat down cross-legged and straightened his posture. He slowed his breathing and turned the page.

 **[Next, close your eyes and focus your attention inward to your mind]**

Max shut his eyes and crossed his arms, trying to "look inward". He put his fingers to his temples feeling the small pulses of his brain. He concentrated on that sensation, going deeper and deeper until he could feel nothing else.

Then suddenly he sensed it, the cycle of blood through his body, sending energy to each section of his brain, it was like a river of water rushing through his every cell.

 **[Grasp onto that sensation and expand it to your chest, arms, and then to your legs]**

Max complied and expanded the river of energy going through him accordingly. He slowly became aware of the subtle twitches in his muscles, the rising and falling of his chest with each breath, the rumbling in his chest.

 **[Now concentrate on maintaining that sensation until you are able to grasp it while moving]**

And so Max sat in the backyard for upwards of three hours. It was chilly, and the ground was uncomfortable but the boy didn't care. If anything the discomfort helped Max get a hold of his senses faster. He occasionally moved his arm or opened his eyes to expand his control.

Max withdrew from his inner mind and immediately covered his ears. Because of his heightened awareness, he could feel sounds travel through him to a greater degree. It wasn't an intense change but it would take some getting used to.

He slowly got to his feet and started walking around. Much to his relief, he could still feel the energy running through him but at a much weaker level. It was like a weak presence in the back of his head, but not distracting.

It felt surprisingly natural, like a heartbeat. However, when he was moving, he could weakly sense something holding him back as if his clothes were weighted but light at the same time.

 **[I'm sure you've noticed the mental barrier created by your brain. For now, try to bring down these barriers partially. Be sure not to bring them down too much as your body is not conditioned enough to handle the strain]**

The boy felt himself pushing against a wall as he ran. He mentally pushed back against the wall, feeling his energy drain in response. Pressure built up in legs as his muscles became more taut.

 **[Feel the pressure buildup in your legs, and your energy converge and release it in a violent burst of motion]**

He felt power saturate in his legs and got into a jumping stance. He leaped as far as he could and suddenly found himself soaring seven feet in the air. He stumbled upon landing and had trouble stopping.

 **[SP:600/640]**

Ma took a deep breath. That jump took a lot more power than he thought it would.

 **[The exhaustion you're feeling right now is natural. Worry not, it will come easier as time passes and you become more adjusted to the strain]**

 **[I recommend going through basic mobility drills while using Hyper Response to help integrate it into combat more smoothly]**

 **[Congratulations Young Huntsman-to-be. May the gods wish you strength.]**

The panel closed, and the book slammed shut.

' _...Well that was anticlimactic.'_ Max expected a little more fanfare, maybe a jingle, or an over-dramatic panel saying " **CONGRATULATIONS!** ". He kneeled down to re-Pocket the book but, much to his chagrin, it started pulsing again.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Max jumped away in fear.

Unlike last time the book didn't stop pulsing after Max moved away. Waves of energy traveled through the yard, shaking the leaves of nearby trees. The book became transparent and bathed the Max in a bronze-colored light.

The book slowly lost its form, becoming a ball of pure bronze energy. It floated high into the air and shot toward Max. He tried to guard, but the ball passed harmlessly through his arms and then everything went white.

* * *

The white haze fell and Max was sprawled out on the grass, the Skill Tome nowhere to be found.

"*Groan*" Max sat up and massaged his temples. His brain felt like it had been sat on by a sumo wrestler. But strangely enough, he felt a little refreshed. He noticed that the sky was darker than it had been before he whited out.

Max panicked and pulled out his scroll.

 **3:27 PM**

About three hours had passed while Max was out.

' _Is every one of these things gonna knock me out when I use them?'_ Max gripped. Sure this one didn't put him to sleep for two days but it was still annoying.

 **[Skills and Talents Updated: Please Check Menu]**

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that."

* * *

 **[Skills]**

 **[Pick-Pocketing: Rank-Intermediate/High 6/10]**

 **[Hand to Hand (Basic): Rank-Intermediate 6/10**

 **[Spear Technique: Rank-Low 3.2/10]**

 **[Physical Reinforcement » Hyper Awareness (Basic): 2/5]**

 **[Talents]**

 **[Drink Mixing: Rank-Low 3/10]**

 **[Knitting: Rank-Low/Intermediate 4/10]**

 **[Cooking: Rank-Intermediate 5/10**

 **[Comic Knowledge: Rank-Submaster 9/10]**

 **[Marksmanship: Rank-Newbie 1/10]**

* * *

' _Well that's new.'_ Max was starting to put two and two together about the menu. The sudden rush of power he felt after battle wasn't just because of his stats increasing. His skills advanced in rank the more he used them and got worse the less he used them.

' _It makes so much sense.'_ He had only had Alpha for just over a month, but using it felt almost natural, weirdly natural. So to that end if he used Hyper Response more then…

 **[I recommend going through basic mobility drills while using Hyper Response to help integrate it into combat more smoothly]**

Max remembered the advice the book gave him and steeled his features. "Let's do this."

* * *

 **Attempt no.1**

Max stood in a vacant lot, trying not to think about how many things could go wrong with what he was going to do. He cracked his neck and took a running pose, feeling the calm roar of Hyper Awareness in the back of his mind. The mental barriers of his muscles slowly lifted and his heart surged with energy.

And without a moment's hesitation, he shot forward, surprising himself with how fast he went.

It was exhilarating. He felt his boots kick up small puffs of dust with every step; he felt air rush past his ears, his body was warm with energy. He could do anything!

And then he tripped on a rock.

Time seemed to slow down when Max glanced at his feet. One second he was rushing forward like a world-class sprinter and then he was sent tumbling forward right on his face

He groaned, flipped onto his back, and spat out a clump of dead grass.

"I regret everything."

* * *

 **Attempt no.2**

Max thankfully didn't trip on a rock this time around. He was starting to run out of ground, so he decided to try and turn around.

This was a mistake.

His brain told him to turn right, but his body wasn't fast enough and he ended up tripping over his own feet, leaving him lying face down in the dirt…again.

 **[472/640]**

* * *

 **Attempt no.7**

It was around six o'clock

Fortunately, Max had learned how to turn correctly and had grasped a decent enough handle on stopping. But unfortunately Max's luck was shit and a black lump had appeared in front of him mid-lap. The boy was able to stop but not without accidentally kicking the lump.

The lump got to its feet and looked at Max. It turned out that lump was a small solid black cat.

*HISS*

Max's shoulders slumped, "You've got to be kidding me…"

The cat pounced.

* * *

 **Attempt no.11**

After repeatedly pulling his face out of the dirt, prying an angry cat off of his face…twice, and a weird encounter with a squirrel, Max had finally made a full lap around the lot with few mistakes. And much to his joy…

 **[Hyper Awareness(Basic): 2/5 » 2.5/5]**

' _Finally, I can take a damn nap.'_ Max was pretty close to exhaustion. Sure he had enough energy to go another lap or two, but he was not in the mood to do anything else today.

Max pulled his scroll out to check the time. In the corner, there was a notification from the "special" comms app junior installed.

 **From: BitchBoss**

 **Meet me at the corner of Oak and Heliodor. Bring no one with you. Be there by 9 sharp and you won't be harmed.**

 **Time - 8:42**

' _Oh, Shit!'_

Cinder sent a map along with it. It would be about 30 minutes away if he ran…

…well if he ran normally.

"Please don't trip, please don't trip, please don't trip, please don't trip." Max chanted like a man possessed. He clumsily dodged around a child chasing a dog. For some reason, there was a man jogging…at almost nine pm…freaking fitness nuts.

"On your left," Max said as he rushed past the man.

"Oh, come on!" the man shouted in a mix of anger and frustration.

It was close, barely a block away if he cut through an alleyway. He was almost through but for some reason, there was an old dumpster blocking the way with some drunk kids sitting in front of it.

"Damn it." Max cursed under his breath. He could absolutely not be late. The last time Cinder was stood up she burnt Micheal's arm off.

Max speed up and braced himself. He was getting closer every second. 50 feet away, 40 feet, 20, 10. Max jumped clean over the startled drunks and vaulted himself over the roof of the dumpster.

He soared for a second before hitting the ground running, running right to the meeting point.

He stopped slowly this time around, not having enough energy to maintain his speed anymore. He wheezed and rested his hands on his knees.

 **Time - 8:57**

'Just a few minutes to spare.' The boy thought, relieved. He dusted himself off and leaned against a nearby wall.

"B-back off." Max heard a man nearby say fearfully.

"Just hand it over already! Then I won't have to cut ya!" Another voice barked threateningly.

Max peaked around the corner to see a man being held at knifepoint by someone he vaguely recognized from Junior's, probably someone who was fired.

Max knew that he could stop the man, quite easily in fact. He could just pull out Alpha and shoo the bastard away. Hell, he could probably just push the man over or something.

But he didn't really want too. Some part of him wanted to help out but…as cold as it may sound, it wasn't his problem, nothing would change that…nothing.

His hand was shaking.

'Not my problem...Not my problem…' Max walked away and resumed his spot on the wall. He checked his scroll, it was nine sharp but no Cinder. Max had mixed feelings about this, on one hand, No Cinder but on the other hand, if it wasn't Cinder who called him then who was it?

A small finger tapped Max's shoulder causing him to jump.

Roman's partner, Neo Max remembered, wore a smirk on her face with her mismatched eyes crinkled in amusement.

" _We meet again Wolf head."_ Neo typed with a half-bored look on her face.

Max schooled his features. "What are you doing here?" he asked suspiciously.

Neo rolled her eyes. _"My partner wanted to talk to you about something."_ She could guess what Roman might want to talk to the young faunus about but really wanted to be wrong. She silently grabbed the boy's hand and activated her semblance. They disappeared in a shower of Grey and Pink shards.

* * *

"What the-!" Max found himself standing in front of an old school office door, Neo at his side.

He tried to stay relatively calm but failed. "Where the hell-!?" he was cut off by a towel to the face. Neo looked at him knowingly before walking inside. Max caught the memo and wiped the remaining dirt off of his face before entering after her.

He walking in to the sight of Roman Torchwick with his feet propped up on his desk and a cigar in his hand.

"Oh! Silver Boy, you made it! Glad to see ya. C'mon, take a seat." Max complied hesitantly. He sat ram-rod straight, extremely uneasy about the man in front of him.

Roman chuckled at the boy's unease, "Relax, we're not like those stiffs at Junior's, take a load off." the man slid Max a glass of sweet smelling liquid. He picked up the drink but silently refused to take a sip.

"Well, witty banter out of the way…" Roman took a drag of his cigar and flashed the boy an easy smile

"...Let's talk."

* * *

 _ **Maxy Chibi**_

 _ ***During Chapter 9***_

 _Junior had someone pass out the cards before leaving without a word. Max starred suspiciously at Junior's retreating form._

" _Something bothering ya Silver Surfer?" Tanuki asked jokingly regarding the silverette's pensive look._

 _Max groaned in annoyance at his coworker before answering. "Something's off about this whole thing."_

 _Tanuki scoffed and said, "Nah, I don't think he'd send his best guys into the same bullshit we went through two days ago."_

" _You're right, maybe he's just sending us on a paid vacation to Disneyworld. Nothing to worry about at all." Max grumbled out sarcastically._

 _Well, it turns out that Max was half right_

* * *

 _ **Disneyworld**_

" _WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK!?" Max screamed at the Intern directing his team._

" _Hey, your boss signed a contract, and that contract says that you have to put on the suit." The intern looked tired, as if he had heard dozens say the same thing…which he probably did._

" _FUCK THAT! I AM NOT PUTTING ON A GIANT FUCKING MOUSE SUIT! YOU CAN'T MAKE ME-"_

* * *

" _Hey kid's let's take a picture with Mickey Mouse"_

 _A chorus of "YAYS!" shook the entire park. A small arm of kids ages 4 to 7 clamored onto the giant anthropomorphic Mouse sitting in the square. They climbed onto his shoulders, his arms, his head, everywhere basically, but the mouse didn't move._

 _If one got close enough they could hear wet, sad noises coming inside the mask._

" _Hey," said Tanuki, the Disney tour guide, to the sad mouse "get up so we can take the picture." the noises got louder as the mouse stood up. A child gnawed on the smiling mask. More sounds._

 _They took two hundred pictures that day._

 _The mouse was slumped over against a bench, cries of wounded pride coming from it's breathing hole. Tanuki walked up to the mouse and said with a wide happy grin, "Max, this place is the best! I'm so happy we get to work here for two whole weeks. Aren't you?"_

" _WHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Max's sobs could be heard from Mistral._


	15. Chapter 13: A fateful Deal

**Less than a Hero, More than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 13**

* * *

Max had heard a lot of things about Roman Torchwick over the past few weeks, though not by choice. Max went out of his way to ignore his coworkers, even during their "operations". Most of them were either too loud, too drunk, or too crazy for Max's tastes. So he pretended they didn't exist

But it was (shockingly) hard for someone to ignore people when said person's ears are four times stronger than a regular human's.

Max had only met the man in person twice, first at Junior's and then in the forest with Cinder, but he knew plenty about the orange-haired thief.

People had written him off as a nobody during his first public robbery last year. About three months went by before the rumors started, and it was less than a month ago when people realized his influence in the criminal underworld.

" _You do_ _ **not**_ _wanna cross this guy. My brother tried to doublecross him not too long ago. They're still finding pieces of him!"_

Similar rumors sprung up and over time the man slowly became a legend. You couldn't go anywhere in southwest vale without hearing one of the man's many names. The Shadow, The Orange Phantom, Roman Killwick…okay some of them were pretty stupid, but they got the point across.

And to think only one person had ever heard the man's real voice…until now.

* * *

"Well, witty banter out of the way…" Roman took a drag of his cigar and flashed the boy an easy smile

"...Let's talk." Roman looked Max straight in the eyes sizing the boy up as if he was looking for something. Max had to fight the urge to cringe.

Roman maintained eye contact for a few seconds before taking another long drag of his cigar, closing his eyes in satisfaction.

Several long agonizing seconds passed before Roman broke the silence.

"Do you know who I am?" There was no malice in the man's voice, just tense curiosity.

"...Yeah." Max answered slowly.

"And you know who I...work for," Roman said as more of a statement than a question.

"Unfortunately," This got a silent snicker out of Roman's colorful partner.

Roman smirked, "Then tell me ears for brains," the man leaned forward, looming over Max despite being several feet away.

Max gulped. He was about to say something until he felt something fly past his cheek. Roman's cigar was absent from his hand.

The boy quickly looked back to see Roman's very small, very blunt cigar impaled in the door behind him.

"Do you know what I'm capable of? How easily I could separate your head from your neck? How simple it would be to turn you into a smoking pile of skin and bones?"

Max looked composed on the outside, but on the inside he was screaming. This guy was almost as bad as Cinder! Would they be finding pieces of him halfway across Vale too? Or would Roman just tie him up and throw him in front of a Beowolf? There were so many ways he could've died just in the past minute. Hell, Roman could've gone for the head with his little cigar trick and he would've been a corpse by now.

'But he didn't!' Max realized. He had a hunch that Roman wanted him alive. If he was right, then all will be well. But if he was wrong...well the SDC can rejoice that there's one less faunus in the world.

Max squared his shoulders, grit his teeth, put on a brave face and nodded stiffly, still maintaining eye contact with the orange-headed thief. He was prepared for the worst.

However, the young faunus didn't expect the man to laugh.

"Ha ha ha, I expected you to piss yourself or something but you sure showed me," The man's sinister look disappeared, "Congrats kid, you've earned a small part on my respect...a very, very very small part but it's more than what most people get."

The man leaned to the side and started rummaging through a filing cabinet in his desk.

"Race Cars, Racquetball, Rayman, Oh come on Its gotta be here somewhere."

Neo, who had been inactive this whole time settled the orangette with a mocking stare.

"Yes, I **did** organize the files, ya frigging lunatic..." the man said without a single drop of malice. Neo laughed silently.

"Yeah keep laughing and I'll tell the twins about your stash," Neo's mouth clamped shut, and she got back on her phone, silently telling Roman that he won.

"Raunchy photos, Ah! There it is." Roman pulled out a thin Manila folder with the word 'Recruitment' on it. The thief scanned the folder's contents to make sure everything was there. He smirked and tossed the folder to Max.

Max looked at the cover and then to Roman, "You…want to recruit me?"

Roman rolled his eyes, "Yes, that was clearly implied by me handing you a folder with the word Recruitment on it. Are you slow or something?"

Max's eye twitched, "Well forgive me for being suspicious of the guy who threatened to cut my damn head off."

"Hey, hey, hey. That's in the past now-"

"It was two minutes ago."

"-So let's forget about that and focus on the present."

"But-"

"I wasn't asking, kid."

Max was silent before leaning back in his seat, muttering a quick "okay".

"Alright, now that's what I like to hear," Roman pulled another cigar from his pocket and lit it. "So how's it like working under the old bear?."

"...You mean Junior."

"Yeah him. It sucks doesn't it, the guy is like a boulder, big, brainless, and zero charisma to speak of. And his bar is a shithole, I don't even get how someone could walk in there without throwing up. And the less said about his goons the better, no offense."

Max was inclined to agree. The place reeked of beer, vomit, and sex. It was a miracle that the place was still running. And his coworkers were ungodly levels of annoying, half of them were drunks and the other half were just stupid. Max honestly wished he worked somewhere else or at least had a different boss…

'Still…' Max was in too deep, he knew this. And working under someone like Torchwick was bound to get him even deeper. As much as he hated it, Junior's bar was the safest option.

"We can help each other kid, You want an out and I need some extra manpower. It's a win-win situation."

"Why do you need my help? I doubt someone like you would need help from a kid like me." It sounded weird to call himself a kid, after all, that's happened, no matter how true it was.

"You're half right, I wouldn't normally need help from anyone, let alone some fourteen-year-old."

"Huh?"

Roman sighed, "If It were up to me, I wouldn't even look at anyone from your crowd. But my…boss has me in a tight spot right now. Things have been a little…heated in the underworld for the past few weeks. The only people who have it worse than me are the guys in your club and the White Fang. You sure as hell weren't my first choice but you're the best one I have right now." The thief ran his hand through his hair and took a long drag of his cigar.

*Ding*

A notification appeared on Max's scroll. _"We hope you aren't as dumb as your partners,"_ it said.

Max looked up to see Neo looking at him sternly, holding her scroll out in front of her.

" _We invited a few of them over yesterday. The only ones who got past Roman's test were his second in command and some blonde idiot."_

'Tanuki.'

" _For some reason they both said no. The only person left who isn't worthless at Junior's club for dumbasses is you."_ If the girl was irritated by him she hid it very well.

'That's not very motivating.'

"I tried to tell them," Roman began, "Junior knows how bad Cinder is. He's scared shitless by her. But he still handed you all over to her. Last time he sent over fifty guys and none of them came back. How many of you goons are still alive? Ten? Fifteen? Ha! Doesn't matter, you'll all die in a few weeks, a month tops."

"Wha…" Max's heart raced. Did Junior really know how crazy Cinder was or was Roman just bullshitting him?

"Not convinced, huh? Neo, play it." the short girl complied, pulling up an audio file.

" _ **No way in hell! I sent you 52 guys a month ago and now all of them are corpses! Get the fuck ou-"**_ Neo skipped a few seconds of the recording. _**"And you just want thirty?"**_ another small skip _**"Well...alright you got a deal. I'll send them to you tomorrow."**_ the recording stopped.

Roman looked at Max, who had his eyes closed and his hands shaking slightly. The boy hid it well, but the master thief could tell he was livid.

"There's a saying that us criminals, well at least the worthwhile ones, live by. Honor among thieves, a promise not to sell out your fellow thief unless they cross you somehow. And from what I've seen, that boss of yours doesn't give a single shit about his men. Do you really want to work for someone like that?"

Max shook his head, still too angry to speak.

Roman got out of his seat and walked up to the boy, "I can see it in your eyes kid, you're angry, alone, and hopeless." Max didn't deny it, he was basically sold to the devil, he was technically homeless, and didn't know what he was doing anymore. Hell, he doubted he knew what he was doing in the first place.

Roman placed his hand on Max's shoulder, "Work with me then! Work with me and I'll help you get so strong that people like Cinder won't be able to touch you!" Roman was bluffing and bluffing hard, but Max didn't know that. "All you need to do is help me out with a few jobs."

Roman released Max's shoulder and walked back to his desk, "Do that for me and you'll be set for life! Deal?"

"...Deal." Max knew that he was probably in deep shit, but to be honest…he didn't care. This was his chance to change things, to get away from those idiots! It was too good an offer to pass up.

Roman smiled at the young faunus, "Well then by all means," Roman opened the recruitment folder, revealing a short-worded contract.

* * *

 **By signing this contract I hereby pledge my allegiance to the house of Torchwick. I understand that I am required to follow and complete any orders the leader of the house of Torchwick assign to me and that my place in the hierarchy is to be determined by the house of Torchwick's leader. I understand that any betrayal of and hearsay toward the house of Torchwick is punishable by death. My signature is an impenetrable oath and I bound my blade to the house of Torchwick**

* * *

The boy took a deep breath before grabbing a pen off of Roman's desk and signing his name. _'To late to turn back now.'_ Max echoed his thoughts from earlier.

 _ **Maxwell Argentum**_

His cursive was broken, and the ink was smudged but it was readable, if just barely. Two other names were already at the bottom just above his, a few of Roman's other recruits Max realized. He hoped they weren't too annoying.

"Congratulations, kid! Welcome to the Torchwick clan!" Roman said with a wide smirk. Neo gave Max a lazy salute without looking away from her scroll.

"...So what now?" asked Max.

"*Chuckle* You'll find out in a few days. Just lie low, for now, I'll send someone to get you in a bit." The man inclined his head toward his partner who huffed and got out of her seat. Max's vision became a swirl of browns, pinks, and whites and he felt himself floating. He saw Roman mouth something, but Max didn't hear it. A shattering noise assaulted the boy's ears and everything went black.

Max's head was swimming. He was back in his temporary room, kneeling on the carpet trying to catch his breath. Neo stood in front of him with a small smirk on her face.

* * *

"What *pant* the fuck *pant* was that?" Max glared up at the mute girl who rolled her eyes in response.

" _You'll get used to it newbie."_ Her scroll read.

"That's not an-" Neo vanished before the boy could finish. Max growled and got to his feet, seeing no reason to hide his irritation anymore. He looked out the window. It was about nine thirty, a.k.a **way** too early for Max to go to sleep.

Max groaned and flopped onto his bed. _'Stupid brain…'_ Max _really_ wanted to go to sleep and be done with this stupid day, but he knew that _something_ would keep him up.

 **[Achievement(s) Gained. Please Check Menu]**

' _Speak of the FUCKING devil!'_

 **[Enter the Underground 3** **»** **Underground Initiate 1 | Reward: 2,500 lien]**

 **[Mobster 1** **»** **Mobster 3 | Reward: 2,500 lien]**

 **[Speedster 1 Obtained | Reward: +1 Agility]**

 **[Deal with the Devil (Max) Obtained | Reward: +5 [LOCKED] ]**

The last one struck a nerve with Max. The boy tiredly ran his hand through his hair.

' _What have I gotten myself into?'_

* * *

Four days passed and not a word from Roman or Neo. Max was mulling over why they haven't retrieved him yet when Tanuki barged into his room unannounced.

"What the hell are you doing in my room?! Get out!"

"Dude! These two chicks are downstairs asking for you! They said that Cinder sent them!"

' _WHAT?! Why the hell-'_

*PING* It was a message from Neo. _"They're with us, just go with the act."_

Max put away his phone and darted downstairs with Tanuki at his side. Everyone was gathered on the ground floor. Some were drinking, as usual, and others were looking at Max with pity. And one guy in the corner of the room was…drooling?

"There you are." a girl with a very…distinct accent said. Max turned toward the voice, seeing two girls standing next to each other in the doorway.

They were twins obviously, with the same black hair, green eyes and pale skin, both wearing high-heeled boots. The one on the left wore a red dress, with her hair cut short and long-bladed gloves. The one on the right wore a white dress, with much longer hair and blades on the back of her heels.

" _They're with us, just go with the act."_

Max pushed his way past Tanuki and clenched his fist, "What the hell do you want?" Max hoped Neo was telling the truth, otherwise, he was fucked.

The one in white rolled her eyes, "Didn't these idiots tell you? The boss needs you to come with us. So, like, get your shit so we can go already." She sounded kinda bored.

"I ain't going anywhere until you tell me what the hell is going on!"

"You know why we're here," said the one in red, "The boss said that you don't need to be here anymore. They sent us to take you away." The grunts who were paying attention stiffened. What did Max do to piss off Cinder?

Max gritted his teeth, making a show of his frustration, "…Fine, I'll go with you."

"What? Max, you can't seriously-"

"Save it, Tanuki," Max whispered to the blonde, "I'm done with this shit, I'm sick of living like this. Going with them is my only way out. I'm…sorry, but this is the only way."

Max walked up to the twins with his eyes glued to the floor, "Let's just get this over with."

"Hm, That makes our job a lot easier," said the one in white, "Millie get the cuffs."

Seconds later the young faunus was being led into a bullhead with his hands bound. He spared one final glance at the shoddy building as he and the twins flew off. He sure as hell wouldn't miss the place.

The one in white looked Max up and down, "Ugh, I can't believe the boss hired one of Junior's losers." she grumbled.

"Ignore my sister," spoke the one in red, "She's, like, kinda bitchy sometimes."

"Excuse you?!"

The clawed one ignored her sister's outraged cry, "My name's Miltia, the prissy one is Melanie."

"Screw you."

"Roman sent us to get you."

Max inwardly sighed in relief, "The name's Max, Max…Argentum." Miltia nodded and undid Max's handcuffs, before returning to the cockpit.

"..."

"..."

"...So what took Roman so long?" asked Max, breaking the silence.

"Some pricks tried to betray the boss, he needed our help to get rid of them," said Melanie.

"And that took four days?"

"...There were a lot of them, like, about a hundred."

"And Torchwick needed _your_ help? I find that hard to believe."

"Why you little-"

"Cut it out you two," Miltia interjected from the helm, "We're here."

They were in the deserted part of southern Vale, far away from any police stations or huntsman centers. Unlike the eastern part of the city, it was relatively quiet. No gang fights, no cops, and barely anyone out on the streets. It was…refreshing to not hear constant gunshots and screaming.

Miltia directed the bullhead toward a small looking warehouse decked out in orange, Roman's base Max realized. They descended onto a small helipad with a flaming pumpkin serving as a marker. Roman and Neo were standing not too far away to welcome their newest recruit.

The ship's door opened and a disoriented Max walked out, Melanie and Miltia walking out behind him. Roman sauntered up to them and lightly smacked Max on the back.

"Not used to flying yet?" the boy nodded, "It sucks, doesn't it. Don't worry, you'll go through worse in a little bit."

'Wait, what was that last part?'

"I'm sure you have some questions, kiddo. But save them for after the tour." Roman walked toward his warehouse, motioning for the others to follow him. A light jingle played as the group went through the doors.

It was surprisingly large on the inside…or maybe Max was just short compared to everyone else (except Neo). The warehouse had walls sectioning off different areas and Shipping crates stacked up on the walls. Max took a peak inside one and immediately had to cover his eyes.

There was a ridiculous amount of dust inside. Burn dust, Wind dust, Ice dust, etc. It was basically a rainbow made out of magic rocks. Max could practically smell the raw power inside. And that was only one crate! There had to be at least a dozen on the walls.

Max impulsively reached out to touch one but was stopped by his new boss slamming the lid shut.

Roman looked somewhere between Amused and annoyed, "Look, don't touch. We don't want you touching the merchandise and blowing us up, do we?" The boy shook his head and walked away from the crates.

"Alright Kiddies," the twins scoffed at this, "Allow me to begin the Torchwick Grand Tour®!" Neo shot the man a look that said _"Seriously"_ which the orangette ignored.

He directed them to a room with Bunk-beds, some basic household things and a small flat screen, "This is where the three of you will sleep for now." The three in question were in various degrees of outrage because of this. The twins were about to say something but were stopped by Roman's glare. Max wisely decided to stay silent but still mentally cursed his boss. He wasn't one for roommates either.

"You'll get your own rooms after you prove yourselves worthy of them." At least it wasn't permanent…hopefully.

Next Roman showed them a room with a few couches, a Holo-Television, a coffee table, and a small kitchen area. Pretty self-explanatory. It was basic but not too shoddy.

Roman went through a few more areas, the bathroom, storage area, meeting room, and a walled off section with purple paint on it saying **DO NOT ENTER** in bold white letters.

"And last up on our little tour is the training room." This was the largest section of the warehouse by far. Random spots of burnt ground and ice patches covered the floor. The room smelled of sweat and what Max hoped wasn't blood.

"This, ladies and gentleman, is where-"

 ***BOOOM***

"My apologies." said a young but classy voice from a different part of the warehouse. Max swore he could hear a British accent, but chalked it up to his mind playing tricks on him considering that Britain didn't…exist in Remnant.

Roman twitched in response, "Ahem, before is was SO RUDELY INTERRUPTED!…This, ladies and gentleman, is where you will be spending most of your time for the foreseeable future."

'Huh?' Max tilted his head in confusion.

"You see, I need to get as much dust as possible and I need a capable team to do that. And I'm afraid that you three aren't gonna cut it yet."

"But-" began the twins

"You two were basically useless during our little skirmish with the lizards yesterday. It took you each an hour just to take out **ten** of those mooks." Roman said in a scolding manner.

"And you," Roman pointed his cane at Max, "You've got spunk kid, but you're nothing compared to the people we'll be up against." Max paled slightly and glared at the orangette.

"Relax kid, I'm not just sending you off to the Beowolves without being prepared. Do I look like that punk Junior to you?" Max's scowl lightened but didn't disappear.

"Now that being said…" Roman snapped his fingers. Neo pulled out her weapon, a deceptively frilly parasol, and got into a battle stance.

 **[Extreme Training Commenced, x1.3 Experience until end]**

'Is he serious?!'

"...Training begins now." The short girl reared her arm back and lunged at the unprepared trio.

"Try not to die!"

* * *

 _ **Maxy Chibi**_

 _ **Is that a motherfucking _ reference?!**_

 _Max was running down the street with a waffle between his teeth. He was gonna be so fucking late!_

" _Why did I have to get the quadruple breakfast deal?! Cinder's gonna kill me!" Max had to hurry back for his next heist for Cinder lest he become ashes on the floor. He doubled his speed, pure, raw adrenaline overpowering what was psychically possible for him to do._

 _However, he wasn't completely in control of his movement, having a few close calls with some pedestrians. He couldn't stop if he wanted to._

 _This would be his undoing._

 _A short girl with orange hair and a quiet boy with long black hair, both about a year younger than Max, were crossing the street. The girl was holding a gargantuan sized bag of pancakes. Many onlookers were surprised that she could carry them at all._

" _Hey, Renny? Do you think-"_

" _Look out!"_

 _Max had rammed headfirst into the orange haired girl, sending them both to the ground. The large bag of pancakes slipped from the girl's hands, sending its contents flying everywhere._

" _Ugh." Max looked around, Why were there pancakes everywhere?_

" _...My pancakes…" Max saw an orange haired girl say with despair. The boy next to the girl became filled with dread. He looked at Max with pity before running away, leaving the girl in the middle of the street._

 _Max cocked en eyebrow at the boy's actions. Why was he so afraid?_

" _MY PANCAKES!" Max heard the orange haired girl scream at him. Her face was set in a scowl menacing enough to make Solid Snake piss himself. Her entire body glowed with black lightning and her eyes were shadowed._

" _...Oh…I'm sorr-"_

" _NORA!"_

 _Max found himself being punched square in the gut. The wind was knocked from his lungs. He dry heaved and clutched his stomach._

" _How the hel-"_

" _NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA!"_

 _The girl unleashed a never-ending barrage of lightning infused punches on the poor boy. Max had long since coughed up his breakfast…and dinner…and yesterday's lunch._

" _NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA! NORA!_ _ **NORA!**_ _" With that last 'NORA' The girl launched the boy to Oum knows were._

' _WRYYYYYYY!' The boy thought as he flew away to parts unknown._

" _Where the hell is Max?" Thought Tanuki aloud_

" _AHHHHHHHH!"_ _ ***CRASH***_

" _There he is…"_

" _Hey, Tanuki…"_

" _Yeah?"_

" _I don't feel so good…" The boy wheezed from his spot in the concrete._

 _Tanuki sighed and tipped his nonexistent hat, "Yare Yare Daze…" Roman and Neo were standing not too far away, scoping out any potential recruits._

" _What a bunch of weirdos, Eh Neo?"_

" _ **KONO NEO DA!"**_

" _What the fuck?!"_

* * *

 **Hello, one and all, welcome back, it's been a while…like a long while…Ge** **e** **z**

 **Sorry this chapter is later than usual. With school and finals, I just haven't had any time or mojo to write. But now that school is out I have a lot more free time on my hands to write and stuff. So I will be uploading faster…promise.**

 **And as most of you know this story's 1-year anniversary has passed…like three weeks ago. So I'd like to thank any readers, old or new, who have read this. I honestly never imagined this story breaking 40 or 50 followers or favorites. But here I am now having broken 300 followers and over 200 favorites. It brings a smile to my face knowing that so many people enjoy my story. Thanks from the bottom of my heart. I'll try not to disappoint you all.**

 **Reminders: Current date for this chapter:** **December** **29** **th** **201** **4** **, Max current Age: 15, Birthday: December 25** **th**


	16. Chapter 14: The Shield of the Soul

54

 **Less than a Hero, More than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 14**

* * *

Max didn't know what to expect from his training under the Torchwicks at first, or more specifically what to expect from his "teachers".

The boy could read Roman easily in a sense. It didn't take a genius to tell that the guy was dangerous, the man's reputation was proof enough. Max didn't even want to look at the guy's level, his gut told him that knowing would be a lot more stressful if he did. Ignorance is bliss they say and Max didn't need any more stress in his life.

Neo didn't feel like much of a threat at first. Sure she had an Aura, but Max had beaten Aura users during his "fundraising" for Cinder. Her looks didn't make her look very threatening either. Her short stature and seemingly innocent face didn't exactly scream menacing. Hell, Max had thought she was a child when they first met (even though she was older than him).

Sure Max's gut had told him that she was dangerous, but his gut said the same thing about Tanuki so clearly it could be wrong sometimes. Max would've confidently said that he could have taken her…that is until he got a good look at her level.

 **{Neopolitan: Level 39 | Hp:2,496 | [LOCKED]}**

She was over twice as strong as him! It took a lot of the boy's power to not stare during the tour of Roman's hideout. It was ridiculous how someone who looked around his age was that strong. Her level alone reminded him of how weak he was compared to everyone else. And the beatdown she gave him on the first day of training just rubbed it in. His only solace was that the twins didn't last too much longer than him, even though they clearly weren't used to fighting alone.

It was humbling(and humiliating) in a way to get knocked around so easily by someone who looked as fragile as Neo (even though that clearly wasn't the case). Through that humiliation, Max had found a goal. To become stronger than Neo, if only so he could brag about it to her smug face.

So Max decided to bite the bullet and ask her to train with him. The petite girl didn't mind at all. She got to stretch her legs a little more and smack around the rookie a little without Roman getting pissy. It was a win-win.

Fast forward three months to Max's most recent "training session". The silverette had improved by a lot, but unfortunately for him…

' _SON OF A BISCUIT EATING WHORE!'_ Max cursed at no one in particular as he was sent flying into one of the Hideout's walls.

 ***Clang***

 **[-148 HP]**

…He had a long way to go before he could hope to match his training partner.

"Uhrg" Max groaned and shook away the ringing in his ear. One gets used to landing face-first onto walls when training with a psycho midget, said Einstein. Or did he? Maybe Max had taken a few too many hits to the head.

Max got to his feet and glared at his opponent, who was whistling a merry tune while inspecting her parasol. He growled and charged at Neo with Alpha raised high over his head, not noticing the smirk that grew on her face.

The girl easily sidestepped an overhead swing from the silverette and deflected his next slash with Hush (her trusty deadly parasol) with a smirk. She actually had to put some effort into blocking him now.

She didn't dwell on her training partner's progress for long and knocked the boy's weapon skyward with Hush, following up with a spin kick to his temple, sending him a few dozen feet away.

 **[-86 HP]**

Max caught his footing and deactivated Hyper-Awareness with a grimace. His stamina was getting way closer to zero than he hoped. He couldn't afford to keep going full blast, lest his muscles give out from the strain. He had about two or three bursts left in him, four if he pushed himself.

Neo noticed some of the definition fade from Max's body and walked away. The guy had lasted about ten minutes this time around, impressive considering how short their first match was, but he had clearly reached his limit and Neo had more pressing matters to attend to.

' _It's been a while since I've tried Mistralian, but I_ _ **am**_ _in the mood for some Atlesian sherbet…'_

Max stared at Neo's retreating form and reactivated Hyper-Awareness. He would only have one shot while she was still distracted. The boy sprinted toward Neo with a stab aimed straight toward her spine.

Neo having heard the boy's footsteps spun around and axe-kicked alpha out of Max's hands onto the stone floor. She leaped toward the shocked teen and hooked Hush's handle around Max's neck. She quickly planted her foot on the boy's back and, using her momentum and superhuman strength, vaulted him overhead.

The girl watched Max land with a sharp thud and mock dusted off her gloves, admiring her handiwork. He wasn't much of a challenge, but training was a decent workout nonetheless. She eyed Max's still form. Maybe she had gone a little overboard…was he still breathing?

"Uhhhhhhhgg," groaned Max.

Neo shrugged and teleported away.

' _Everything…Hurts'_

* * *

 **[Training Complete! Trained with {Neopolitan} x1.3 training benefit]**

 **[Max Argentum: Level 26 (20,184/20,500) » Level 27 (357/22,000)]**

 **[Strength: 65 » 66 | Vitality: 78 » 80 | Constitution: 68 » 69 | Agility: 91 » 92 | Dexterity: 79 » 80 | LOCKED]**

 **[HP: 292/1,160 | SP: 52/1,110]**

 **[AP: 0 » 3]**

* * *

Max willed the status menu away. At least something good was coming from his little "training sessions". Sure, he didn't stand a chance against the multicolored midget (who would kill him if he ever said that to her face), but he was making some progress, which was good. He wanted to ask the girl for another round , but his body wasn't…exactly in the best condition for any more training, or exercising, or moving.

"Guess I'll just lie here…like a potato…or a cat. Fucking cats, always…catting everywhere…damn I'm tired." Slurred Max. Now would be a great time for a power nap. The boy's eyelids became heavy, and he began to drift away…

 ***WRRR***

 ***BUZZZ***

 ***BEEP BEEP BEEP***

…Until the sound of whirring machinery reached his ears.

' _Annd power nap over! Fucking machines!'_ Max reached into the pocket, chomped down some slices of pizza, and slowly got to his feet. He trudged his way to his and the twins quarters, using Alpha as a walking stick.

The rookie quarters weren't anything special. Painted a long since faded brown, housing some beds, small tables, and a blue curtain cutting the room in half (courtesy of the twins). Max threw his jacket along with Alpha onto the carpet and flopped into his bunk, which creaked under his weight. He lazily fluffed his pillow, making sure not to rip the already fragile pillowcase, and laid down to rest. Maybe he would get some peace and quiet for once.

 ***WRRR***

 ***BOOP BOOP BEEP***

 ***CLANG***

Max turned on his side and covered his wolf ears with his pillow in a weak attempt to muffle the noise.

 ***BANG BANG BANG***

 ***ZZZTTT***

 ***WRRR***

Max gripped his blue sheet, nearly ripping its fabric. _'It doesn't bother me. It doesn't bother me.'_

 ***CLANG***

 ***WRRR***

 ***BANG BANG BANG***

' _It doesn't bother me. It bothers me. It bothers me a lot! DAMN IT!'_ Max threw off his covers, got up, and pocketed Alpha.

There were a lot of things Max didn't like. Pumpkins, loud people, cats (though that was because his new genetics rather than genuine hatred). However, the one thing he absolutely **hated** was being woken up. It already took him way longer to fall asleep than normal. He could live with waking up somewhat early, but some prick keeping him up later than he needed to would get no sympathy from him.

Which brought Max to his current predicament.

One of Max's "roommates", a boy who went by Maverick, tended to stay up extra late working in his lab on the other side of the warehouse. He was something of a mechanic for Roman, operating on their weapons and making programs. It wasn't much of a problem, as he would usually be coding something or work during the day.

However, Maverick had began working into the night on something, something big. Sometimes he would work until six and sometimes he would work literally all night. And whenever he worked, his machines would work. And they weren't exactly quiet, often traveling throughout the entire warehouse. It was a miracle people couldn't hear it from outside, otherwise the whole place would've been stormed weeks ago.

The other residents of the warehouse were spared losing much sleep over Maverick's work. The walls were just thick enough for the twins to catch some sleep, Neo lived in a different section(well away from the noise), and Roman wasn't even there half the time.

Max glared enviously at the snoring twins. Unlike them, he could hear Maverick's work loud and clear, one of the many downsides of being a faunus. The night vision was cool and all, but sometimes his new body sucked, like the time he got fleas and was forced to bathe in dish soap all day.

 ***FHSSS***

 ***BEEP BEEP ZRTTT***

 ***WRRR***

The silverette grumbled and left the rookie quarters to go shut up a certain workaholic.

* * *

The boy arrived at Maverick's "door", a glass slab with the words " **DO NOT DISTURB UNLESS EMERGENCY** " drawn on with permanent marker. He quickly swung it open and plugged his faunus ears with his fingers.

Max saw his target standing in front of a very large desk covered with holo-monitors, scrap metal, and coffee mugs. The boy, covered in a tattered, oil-stained lab coat typed like a demon, walls of code popping up every second.

"Hey!" Max yelled, just barely louder than the machines behind him.

Maverick tensed and pulled a white raygun from…somewhere and aimed it at the potential threat to his work.

Maverick was about a year older than Max, evident by the boy's height. His hair was a spiky off-white mess. His red eyes were wide from caffeine overdose, obvious from his shaky hands and the stained coffee mugs near his workstation. A dark purple worker jacket hung off his shoulders, barely visible under his coat.

His eyes flashed with recognition. "Oh, It's just you," The boy deposited his weapon and turned back to his workstation, "It's…nice seeing your silver arse, but could you please leave. I'm on the cusp of a scientific revolution here."

Max ignored the older teen's request and glared at him, "Revolution? What the hell are you going on about?"

Maverick quickly spun around and smirked widely at the faunus, "Hn, only the greatest breakthrough in neural engineering known to mankind! The apotheosis of technology for centuries to come! The absolute pinnacle of Altesian Science! HEH HEH HEH, HA HA HA HA!" The teen preceded to go on a tangent about the follies of Atlesian engineers and how he would surpass them all, laughing 'menacingly' the whole time.

' _This guy's a lunatic!'_

Max quickly got annoyed by the teen's rambling, "Shut up already! I don't give a shit about your stupid Atlesian science. Just-"

Rage flashed over Maverick's face, "HOW **DARE** YOU!" The boy flashed in front of Max and aggressively held him by the collar.

"That is way too close!"

"YOU UTTER **FOOL**! ATLESIAN SCIENCE IS THE **GREATEST** IN THE WORLD! HOW DARE YOU CALL IT STUPID!" The young scientist was practically foaming at the mouth.

"Get the hell off me, you lunatic!" Max pushed Maverick away with a surprising amount of difficulty. The guy looked so bony!

The faunus growled and straightened his collar, "Chill the fuck out man," he slipped his hands into his 'pockets', "or else we're gonna have a **problem** , capiche?"

Maverick deadpanned at Max, "You know when I called you an Arse I didn't mean it. Way to prove me wrong…c _razy bloke_ " He muttered at the end.

The silverette registered the scientist's words and rolled his eyes, "Whatever man. Could you just…turn it down or something. All the noise is killing my ears. I can't sleep for shit." Max would later realize that he sounded like his grandpa for a second and promptly be embarrassed about it.

Maverick's eyebrows shot up, "Oh. Well, why didn't you just lead with that?"

Max's eye twitched.

The scientist absentmindedly tapped his finger against his desk. "Truth be told, I'm not a big fan of all the ruckus in here I can't stop my research _here_ , I'm so close to perfecting my interface. And I'm a little short on lien to get any decent upgrades for that," He pointed toward the back of his lab, where sat the source of all the noise.

It was some kind of containment field, with various massive power tools aimlessly hammering away at some kind of reactor in the middle.

Maverick continued, "My seller only ships materials en masse. I'm about fifty thousand lien short on my order and I won't be getting that type of money soon."

"Define soon…"

"Two weeks minimum."

Max pinched his nose and cursed. On one hand, he had a crapton of money left over from his quests, on the other hand he wasn't too keen on giving a freaking stranger his hard-earned Lien.

' _You know what, fuck it. What're a few extra hours of sleep compared to basically five thousand bucks.'_

The silverette walked away hurriedly, no point in sticking around. He neglected watching where he was going, all too eager to get to bed

"Uh mate, you might want to watch where you're-"

*Crash*

"Damn it, my toe!"

* * *

 **The next day**

"Well, go ahead, wake the bastard up."

"Hell naw, I did last time! It's your turn!"

Roman had called up a special meeting for the rookies. Melanie and Milita had left immediately when the mob boss notified them, not bothering to wake up Max. Roman, who noticed Max's lack of reply, sent two of his henchman to retrieve the silverette. Unfortunately, the two had a…history with waking the boy up for Neo's "training sessions".

"You kiddin'me, last time I woke the silver prick up he slugged me in the jaw!"

"You blasted an airhorn in his face."

"I thought it would be funny!"

"It **was** funny, for me at least."

"Why you-"

"Guuurgh"

The two henchmen stiffened from Max's sleep-addled groan. The boy began to stir, roused by the henchmen's very bad whisper-yelling.

"BOOK IT!"

The two men raced out the door, slamming it shut behind them

*BANG*

Max jolted upright…"WHAT THE-OW!"…and accidentally banged his head on the top bunk.

 **[-10 HP]**

Max rubbed his sore forehead and lazily pulled out his scroll. "What time is it?" he slurred.

 **12:03 PM**

' _Damn, guess I slept for a while…huh'_ There was a notification labeled 'Urgent Meeting' from Torchwick sent about an hour ago.

 _Important meeting for the rookies in the underground sector at 11:30 sharp. Combat Armor and Weapons are mandatory. Failure to arrive on time will result in a significant penalty._

"Ah,Crapbaskets."

Max burst out of his bunk and threw on his jacket and boots, putting his 92 Agility stat to good use. He kicked open the door, looked at the henchmen waiting outside and asked "Where's the underground sector?!" in a panic.

One henchman shakily pointed at a small elevator in the back of the warehouse. Max nodded in acknowledgment and snatched a keycard from the other henchman.

Max raced to the elevator and frantically pressed the down button. "Come on, come on, go faster dammit!"

The boy shoved the elevator doors open the moment they stopped and raced down a long hallway leading to Roman's meeting area. He skid to a stop inside of a large candlelit room with an orange emblem drawn in the center.

Roman stood proudly next to the emblem with Neo sitting next to him, idly playing on her phone. The twins were standing in different corners of the room absentmindedly staring at their hand's which carried an ethereal glow.

The ginger mob boss noticed Max's abrupt entrance and smirked.

"Well well, well, look who decided to show up. You really kept us waiting you know, I could feel myself dying from boredom." The man had a dark glint in his eye. Roman Torchwick wasn't a man who enjoyed having his time wasted. Luckily for Max, he was a little too winded to threaten Max's life again. That didn't mean the man would let the silverette off easy.

Roman slowly walked over to Max, Melodic Cudgel in hand, with a smile that didn't reach his eyes. Max's arms felt much heavier than normal and the room seemed darken. The silverette would swear he felt his heart almost stop.

"So what's with the hold-up kid? I'd ask if you were fashionably late but…" Roman lightly flicked the boy's messy silver hair, "…we both know the answer to that. Now spill." the man ground out.

A bead of sweat fell down the boy's face in slow motion.

Max looked up at Roman, barely making eye contact. "Maverick's stupid machines kept me up for a while…I ended up sleeping in." the boy's words came out slurred like someone had pressed slow down on the remote control to his mouth.

The boy inwardly withered under Roman's gaze for many long, tense seconds until the invisible pressure that covered Max's body vanished. His breath came back full force and his arms could move freely once again.

The orangette smirked down at him, "Well that's a relief to hear, I had thought you were undermining my authority there for a second. Glad we could clear that up bud," Roman patted Max's shoulder "comfortingly" and nudged him toward the center of the room, "No if you would please sit down over there."

Max aimlessly complied, thoughts running amok in his skull.

'What the hell was that? I could barely breathe right there, but I don't even feel short of breath…just what the hell is this guy?!' Max thought suspiciously as he sat down.

Roman stood in front of Max, hands glowing and said, "Neo here has told me that you've been making a good amount of progress, getting stronger, faster, all that jazz. Nothing near our level but pretty impressive for your age."

Roman flamboyantly spread his arms wide, "Which is why I'm making you an official member of our oh so glorious organization, Torchlight!" he looked so proud of the name. Neo rolled her eyes at her partner's showmanship.

The man ignored the girl's displeasure and continued, "That is why we are gathered here today, to awaken the primal shield hidden deep within your soul!"

" _Can we just get this over with? You've done this like, two times already."_ Neo waved her scroll in Roman's face, which he pushed aside much to her annoyance.

"Today is the day where I, Roman Torchwick, awaken your Aura!" He finished seriously.

' _Seriously?!'_

"Now hold still and try not to scream. Because this is where things get real." Roman gently placed his aura wrapped hand on Max's forehead. His body lit up with an orange glow and a pulse traveled through the shocked boy's body. Soon Max was bathed in the same orange glow as Roman, which flickered and pulsed every second.

"For it is through infamy that we achieve immortality…" A sharp pang of energy went through Max's heart.

"Through this, we are a bourn of power that rises above all…" the boy's vision went in and out of focus, random rushes of power rampaging down his spine.

"Immortal in memory and unbound by time…" He closed his eyes as waves of cold, raw rower soared through his skin.

"I release your spirit, and by my shoulder, awaken thee!" With that final word, Max's eyes fluttered open, briefly flashing blue before fading back to gray. His body glowed a brilliant sliver that bathed the room in white light, which dimmed as soon as Roman's head left his head, but did not fade completely.

The boy held his hands in front of his face, looking as if he was truly seeing it for the first time. Cold ripples traveled up his trembling arms. He clenched his fists as tight as he could and felt something of a second skin covering his hands. It felt…foreign and otherworldly but…right all the same. It felt as if it had been with him his entire life. It felt like a massive shield bathing his body that blocked all harm. It felt…

"...Amazing…" he muttered.

Roman chuckled at Max's expression. The twins had reacted the same way.

"Welp, I'll leave you alone for a while to let you…find yourself or whatever." Roman snapped his fingers," C'mon Neo, I'm tired and in the mood for some scotch."

The boy barely noticed the two walk past, lost in his mind for…reasons.

' _I…I feel great, like I can do anything, like-'_

 **[Milestone Reached!]**

' _Is now really the best time for that!?'_

* * *

 **[Shield of the Soul: Complete]**

 **[Rewards: SPIRIT stat unlocked, Aura menu unlocked, +10 to all stats, Third eye enhancement, 10,000 exp]**

 **[Max Argentum: Level 27 (357/22,000) » Level 27 (10,357/22,000)]**

 **[Strength: 66 » 76 | Vitality: 80 » 90 | Constitution: 69 » 79 | Agility: 92 »** [ **1** ] **02 | Dexterity: 80 » 90 | Spirit: 20 » 30]**

 **[HP: 1,150/1,160 » 1,150/1,260 | SP: 845/1,110 » 845/1,210 |Aura: 500/500(100%) » 750/750(100%)]**

 **[Milestone Reached!]**

 **[Prestige a stat for the first time: Complete]**

 **[Rewards: +10 AP]**

 **[AP: 3 » 13]**

* * *

 _'Well that's …what's up with my Agility stat'_

 **[Aura/Spirit Unlocked: Would you like an explanation of Aura/Spirit? {Yes/No}]**

 **[Agility stat Prestige Lv 1: Would you like an explanation of the Prestige Mechanic? {Yes/No}]**

"Yes and Yes."

* * *

 **[So you finally unlocked your Aura, huh. Good for you]**

 **[Aura has been dubbed by most as the soul's sword and shield, the semblance being the Sword and The barrier being the shield]**

 **[Aura serves as both a second health bar and an energy meter. Aura can only be depleted by taking damage and/or using a semblance. Aura is completely passive and takes no conscious thought to maintain, but can be reduced/condensed on parts of the body as needed.]**

 **[The Aura meter is visible over one's health bar in the user's unique color. It is represented as a number and percent gauging its amount.]**

 **[Spirit does not affect the amount of Aura you have, only the relative durability of your Aura. This means that someone born with "more" aura gains more of a benefit from each point in spirit. No being can have over 100% aura without absorbing souls or being granted more aura by another]**

 **[Max Argentum Aura rating: A-]**

 **[The Aura menu displays the possible ways to train one's Spirit. More methods of training Spirit can be unlocked over time]**

* * *

"Well, at least I can train it." Max waved away the Aura panel, only for it to be replaced.

* * *

 **[So you prestiged your stats, huh. Good for you]**

 **[Prestiging a stat can be basically put down to breaking one's physical/mental limit for power and thus it applies to all beings able to increase their power (unless bound by a cosmic system that says otherwise) including normal people.]**

 **[A stat undergoes prestige every time it breaks a certain number threshold. Every 100 points in a stat equals 1 prestige per stat]**

 **[Prestiging a stat increases the relative benefit given by each stat point per . One with 100 in Vitality will have significantly more Health than someone with 99 in Vitality]**

* * *

Well, that explained a lot. Truth be told Max felt a lot stronger after that milestone thing, but he just chalked it down to his Aura awakening (which he was still trying to get over) which apparently wasn't the case. But apparently his body had been…boosted in a way.

' _But how much is this boost worth?'_ Max wondered. The silverette looked down the hallway to the elevator…the elevator that led to upstairs…which led outside into the city. He smirked

"Only one way to find out."

* * *

It was a beautiful early spring day. Birds were chirping, trees were blooming, and Max was keeping pace with a car…

"W-what the hell?" Stuttered out the confused driver whose it locked eyes with a silver-haired faunus running next to his truck. The boy's hair was blown back by the wind and his ears perked up high. His eyes shined and his tail wagged excitedly.

' _This feels incredible!'_ He shouted mentally.

The boy took a sharp turn onto a rather busy street. He bobbed and weaved through panicking pedestrians, almost tripping on his feet several times and bumping into quite a lot of people. They would've chased after him…if he wasn't moving as fast as a damn car!

' _Guess I'm not used to my new speed yet.'_ Hopefully he wouldn't crash into anything painful.

Max waved away his concerns. He wasn't **that** clumsy, he thought. He resumed going full speed, making sure he wouldn't trip over anything stupid like that fiasco during his Hyper Awareness training.

' _Hmm, what If I…'_ Max tentatively channeled Hyper Awareness in his legs, surely no harm would come from that right?

He was very, very…right?

Max's legs were going full throttle. He was going faster than ever, too fast to stop himself from bowling over some pedestrians, but no real harm there. They'd live.

The real trouble came when he was almost ran over by a truck. He had just crossed the road at the absolute worst time. Max saw the truck barreling straight toward him and responded in kind. If he was just a bit slower, then…well nothing serious would happen. He was already several times more durable than a regular person, even **without** his aura.

Even so, he was still very happy he could avoid the truck-load(HA!) of pain that would've come his way.

Max was currently sitting on top of a rather tall building in central vale, halfway exhausted. Running like that was just plain incredible. The speeds he were going were ridiculous. In the eyes of someone who used to be a normal human, anyway.

' _But still not on Neo's level.'_ He had seen bursts of the girl's true speed, speed that would put his to shame at his current power. He had a long way to go before he could compete with her.

Max stood up from his perch on the building and smirked down at the city.

' _Alright, Let's get started!'_

* * *

 _ **Less than a Hero Abridged ep1**_

 _Max sat on the crappy bus from chapter one with the stolen phone in his hand's looking up…bizzare things._

" _Lesbian….Tentacle….Hentai….Don't judge me dammit…"_

 _The page began to buffer but stopped due to…reasons_

" _Stupid YouTube algorithm!"_

 _ **HEY YOU! YEAH YOU, WEIRDO IN THE STUPID BLUE HOODIE?**_

" _Fuck you! My jacket is awesome, you noob!"_

 _ **WHATEVER BRUH. SAY ARE YOU A HOMELESS TEENAGER?**_

" _Yup"_

 _ **AND AN ANTISOCIAL DOUCHBAG WITH NO FRIENDS?**_

" _Yes and probably."_

 _ **AND HAVE ALWAYS WANTED TO BE A FURRY!**_

" _NO, dafuq?"_

 _ **WELL, YOU ARE NOW!**_

" _What are you…"_

* * *

" _...Talking about?"_

 _ **WELCOME TO REMNANT, WITH OPEN BAR.**_

 _Max noticed his wolf ears and tail and felt the superpower he got inside for no reason, 'Well this is my life now.'_

" _Excuse me sir…" said a homeless person._

" _What the hell?"_

" _Could you spare some chan-"_

" _Square up thot!"_

" _What are you-"_

 _*BLAM* Max punched the homeless guy in the face._

" _God I love beating up homeless people!" jeez I didn't think Max could become_ _ **more**_ _of an asshole, guess I was wrong._

' _Wait…aren't I homeless…'_

 _*BLAM*_

" _OW! HA HA HA, TAKE THAT_ _ **ME**_ _! YOU HOMELESS LITTLE BITCH!"_

* * *

 _ **Two days later**_

" _Hello, underage boy! want to join my special club where grown men come to get their daily poundings?"_

" _.…What in the name of-?"_

" _I mean, fight club."_

" _Oh….okay. Sounds cool, noob."_

* * *

" _No, NO! You said you would be gentle! AHHHHH"_

" _Fuck that! Come to papa! HEHEHE!"_

" _That are you-? Oh god, it's so hard!"_

" _That's right! Take it THOT!"_

 _Max observed the duo in the ring. "Wow, that guy can really punch hard…what did you think they were fucking or something…noobs."_

" _Hey," Junior called over, "Underage boy, come here!"_

 _Max walked over to Junior. "What's up, noob?"_

" _Would you like to join my totally legal bar that is absolutely_ _**not** a coverup for human trafficking_ _?"_

" _I don't know…what's in it for me?"_

" _Money."_

" _Annnd?"_

" _There is at least one drunken catfight every week."_

" _Bitchin'! Where do I sign up!?_

* * *

 _ **The next day**_

" _HELLO PERSON WHOSE NAME I DON'T KNOW! MY NAME IS TANUKI! WOULD YOU LIKE TO HEAR ABOUT_ _ **RAID SHADOW LEGENDS**_ _?"_

' _I have made a horrible mistake…'_

* * *

 **This story isn't over until I literally say so! We will probably be returning to my once a month upload schedule. Twice a month if I'm not too busy.**

 **Alright for those who care enough, I may have been on hiatus for like…ever, but I've still (technically) been working on this story.**

 **I've been taking a few online writing classes here and there, I've set Max's personality firmly in my head, and I most importantly I've built a skeleton of this story from start to finish. I know how this will end. Hell, I even have the first 6 actual story arcs planned out. So hopefully this story will make more sense.**

 **For those confused about Max's power, then pay close attention to this.**

 **A normal person on earth would float around the 10-20 stat range. Olympian level runners float around 40-45 in each stat. Max was at 92 at the very start of the chapter and levels of power get exponentially greater after 100 so…yeah.**

 **Alright peoples, I'm done here. Review or something. You don't have to, I'll upload either way, but it's just a bit more encouraging I guess.**

 **Bye.**


	17. Chapter 15: A Normal Day in Vale

**Less than a Hero, More than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 15**

 **Quick Reminder: Max, above all else, is an established asshole, and a Mafioso-in-training.**

* * *

Let it be known that Max Argentum wasn't the type to wait around. The moment he got back from his little "test run" in the city, he raced to his quarters and dumped all thirteen of his unused Ability points into Spirit.

 **[Spirit: 30 » 43]**

 **[Aura: 750/750 (100%) » 1075/1075 (100%)]**

' _That's weird,'_ though Max as his aura lazily shifted around, _'I don't feel any differn-'_

It started off slow. At first he was mildly winded, barely noticeable. Over the next few seconds his breaths turned into pants, and from pants to strangled gasps for air. Waves of pain and euphoria assaulted Max's senses, driving him to his knees. The boy trembled. Was he going to die again!?

Cold…

Max panted shakily and clenched his fists. His body felt like it had been dipped in a pool from the arctic. His hair stood on end as his body shivered.

So Cold…

His aura spasmed and pulsed for a solid twenty seconds. The room was aflame with a faint silver glow that brightened and darkened frantically. Max wanted to lie down but just…couldn't. It was as if he was frozen in place with a massive load bearing on his shoulders.

And suddenly, as soon as it had came, the weight was lifted off of Max's body.

The pain seemed to melt away in an instant, and the cold flashes disappeared into nothing. He…wasn't going to die, he realized. It felt as if nothing had happened; he wasn't even on his knees. But the shortness of breath remained.

" ***Pant* *Pant*** What the ***Pant*** hell was that?"

Max was honestly confused. Stuff like that never happened when he boosted his stats, **ever**. Yes, there was usually some backlash whenever he boosted his stats or finished training. At worst his muscles would feel sore for a few hours, never anything intense as… _that_ , whatever that was.

No matter how many times he strengthened his body, the results would be the same, without fail.

But this time was different. This time around he was messing with his Aura, the fabric of his very soul. Using the menu to change it not even a day after it was unlocked would obviously have some consequences.

Max looked at the fading ripples of power traveling up his arm. It hurt like a bitch, but he would be lying if he said he didn't like the results. He couldn't exactly put the sensation in words. It was almost as if his Aura had become…stronger? Bigger? Thicker? No, that wasn't the right word for it either…

The boy hummed thoughtfully. It would be a long time before he understood anything about this Aura stuff.

*Knock Knock* A strong hand banged against the door, putting an end to Max's pondering.

"Hey kid!" It was Roman, "You aren't jacking off in there, are you? Because if you are then hurry it up and get to my office ASAP!"

Max cringed and shouted back, "Can it asshole! I'll be out in a minute."

The man laughed, "Alright, Alright. Just remember to wash your hands before you touch any of my stuff." He finished and walked away. Max could sense a dash of irritation in the man's voice, but ignored it.

The silverette groaned and went to grab his jacket. There was no use in arguing with the guy who could kill you **and** out-talk you at the same time.

The boy tentatively picked up his gray jacket, truly looking at for the first time in a while. It looked like it was a decade old. The hood was dirty and missing several stitches. The arms were beaten and shredded to pieces courtesy of Neo and the back looked like someone had taken a whip to it.

"Meh," Max shrugged and threw it on anyway, "I'll just buy a new one later."

* * *

The boy walked into Roman's office with a tired look in his eyes. The whole Aura kickback thing was still affecting him.

Roman noticed the boy's entrance and motioned to a pair of chairs in front of his desk. Max got the orangette's message and sat down. He looked at the mafia boss curiously. There were periodic flashes of irritation flashing across the man's face. Apparently he was pretty annoyed at something, or rather someone.

A cold drop of sweat went down the silverette's face. Roman said there would be a penalty for showing up late to his meeting yesterday. He acted cool about the whole situation, but Max couldn't help being a little wary.

The man himself noticed the look on Max's face and rolled his eyes. _'That kid really needs to stop freaking out every time I call him. If I wanted to kill him for stepping out of line, I would've just slit his neck or something.'_

Roman smirked to himself, _'Then again, one doesn't exactly stay calm in the presence of the great, powerful, and incredibly charismatic Roman Torchwick. He he he…'_

Max's eye twitched at Roman's not-so hidden laughter. He knew that Roman wasn't exactly sane, no criminal of his caliber was, but the man's…oddities were just as confusing as ever.

The man's laughter ceased and his face settled back into annoyance. He took a few tired glances at the door, _'Where the hell is that little she-devil?'_

As if on cue, the door swung open to the sight of a bored Neopolitan staring at her scroll. She looked like she wanted to be there less than Max did.

Roman groaned in relief and leveled a glare on the multicolored girl, "How wonderful of you to _grace_ us with your presence Neo! Gods, where the hell have you been? I called you like an hour ago!"

Neo didn't seem to acknowledge him, staring even more intently at…whatever she was watching. She yawned and relaxed her shoulders, dismissing the indignant mob boss entirely.

Roman scowled and grabbed a filled cup on the edge of his desk. His eyes flashed and all of a sudden the scroll in Neo's hand short-circuited. Neo, rather than drop the scroll, glared at Roman, who had a shit-eating grin on his face.

The man feigned shock, even going as far as to dramatically hold a hand to his mouth, "Oh my, what an unfortunate and unexpected occurrence! You have my _deepest_ sympathies, dearest partner of mine!"

Neo childishly stuck her tongue out at Roman and threw her (now-broken) scroll down on Roman's carpet, which left a wet stain as it bounced. She grabbed the chair next to Max, spun it around backwards, and sat down facing her boss.

Roman visibly relaxed in his seat, "Now that everyone's finally here we can get down to business," he pulled a cigar from his ashtray and continued, "You two haven't been quite…up to up to my standards recently. Nothing too serious for now, but pretty soon you'll need to be in tip-top shape, and you aren't going to cut it as you are now."

Neo looked bored, as this was nothing new to her. Max was quietly indignant, torn between curiosity anger and fear.

"Argentum!" Max's eyes snapped to attention. This was the first time Roman used his last name, "You're a tough little shit, but you've been slacking on your training, big time! If you had been giving it your all then I wouldn't have had to waste my time unlocking your Aura, but you already knew that, huh!"

Max blanched, he had noticed something welling up from inside whenever he was training, but always gave up well before it could come out. And now he was suffering the consequences.

"Neo!" the girl looked at the orangette blankly, "You can barely keep yourself under control half the time, you constantly abandon your grunt units, and almost screwed up your last mission! It's a miracle you haven't gotten yourself killed! Or even worse, gotten us found out!"

"I should take you two out right here and now," Roman took an especially long drag of his cigar, " _But_ I just so happen to be a nice person, and I'm not in the mood of getting any blood on my nice new gloves, so consider yourselves lucky."

Neo rolled her eyes while Max inwardly sighed in relief.

"That being said, still have to punish the both of you. Can't have my subordinates think I'm going soft, you know." The orangette paused to let the message sink in, "That is why, effective immediately, Neo will be directly in charge of this brat's training until **both** of you meet my standards."

Max and Neo were in varying states of confusion, "Ummm," began the silverette, "What the hell's that supposed to mean?" Neo silently wondered the same.

"It means that you," He pointed at Neo, "Are benched until further notice to get the silver brat up to my standards. No missions, no patrols, **nothing** until you get your act together!" There was no room for argument in the man's voice.

Neo shot to her feet, kicking her chair to the floor. Rage skewed her innocent-looking face into a nasty scowl. Her fists were clenched so hard that they would've bled had it not been for her Aura.

She didn't understand! Why was she of all people being put in charge of some…some weakling? He was somewhat tolerable, sure, but she had way better things to do than play tutor to some kid!

Neo's eyes angrily flickered between brown and white, unbeknownst to the small woman.

Roman glared at her, "And there it is! That look in your eyes is the exact reason I'm making you do this! You need to learn some control, and ain't no better way to do that than Aura teaching. That's what I did with you, after all."

The man's expression turned somber, "Not to mention you need to learn how to lead, to take charge and all that junk before it's too late. I'd rather not have all of our men killed because _you_ decided to leave them for dead!"

Neo's eyes turned downcast. She slowly got her chair off the floor and sat down, normally this time around. Max looked at the girl curiously. She was an assassin, not exactly the type to care about goons to his knowledge. Did he…miss something about Roman's little tangent?

"And Max," oh, Roman was back to first names now, "Don't get it twisted. This may turn out to help you in the end, but you're still being punished," the man smirked, "Remember, you're dealing with Neo for as long as I see fit, and I'm sure she's not your…biggest fan right now. Try not to get maimed, brat."

Max at that moment decided that he hated Roman Torchwick…again.

And with that, Roman pushed the two out of his office and slammed the door shut, leaving the duo to not-so-subtly glare at each other. Neither of them were exactly enthused about Roman's "arrangement", albeit different reasons.

".…"

".…"

".…"

Neo was the first to break away from the situation, teleporting away in a shower of white, brown, and pink shards. Max groaned and palmed his face, making his Aura tremble from the impact.

' _Just great, now I have to deal with that crazy midget every day, fucking hell.'_ He could feel the bruises forming already…wait, no those were just the ones from the other day.

' _I need to stock up on meds.'_

*RIIIIIP*

Max looked down at his left coat sleeve, which after months of unending torment finally decided to give up on life and pass on to the great fabric beyond. It would be missed…

' _But first I need to stock up on jackets…'_

"Ha ha ha!"

Max swerved around to see the taller of the Malachite sisters, Melanie, laughing her butt off at him.

"Wow, Max! That is like, a total fashion _faux pas,_ For reals! Hahaha!"

Max stared at the girl blankly, "What the hell is a _fow paw_? Is it French or some shit?"

"What's French?"

The silverette's eye twitched,"...Damn it."

"Ignore my sister," a feminine voice monotoned from behind Max. The boy in question hopped away and slipped his hand near his 'Pocket', ready to fight.

' _Oh,'_ Max relaxed, _'It's just Miltia.'_

The red-clad Malachite sister continued, unaffected by the boy's outburst, "Sister likes to use weird languages to make herself look cool. She did it all the time when we were kids."

"Damn it Millie, Grimm Latin **is** real! You just refuse to admit it!"

"Whatever you say, sister." Was Miltia…smirking?

"Don't patronize me!"

"Whatever do you mean, dear sister?"

"You know what I mean, _biatch_!"

Max watched as the twins entered a small battle of insults and wits. Miltia somehow managing to hold her own despite her tone never changing. She lost in the end however, leading Melanie to triumphantly lead her sister outside to do…whatever they did in their spare time.

' _What the hell is my life?'_ Max wondered as the sister duo walked away.

* * *

The boy realized that he would have to buy some huntsman quality clothes. Inevitably he would have to face off against huntsmen, huntsmen who wouldn't stop to make sure his clothes were in good shape in the middle of a fight. He couldn't afford to buy new outfits every time things got rough, which they definitely would considering his "occupation".

Hunter level clothes tended to come with a lot of extra features. Light Armor, weight holsters, and a boatload of extra pockets. The latter would prove very useful given his ability.

Unfortunately, Max had run into a problem.

The places that places that sold hunter-tier gear were typically run by huntsmen. They were almost always packed with huntsmen, cops, or crazy fashion Dust-tubers, all of which Max would rather avoid.

It took the boy until sundown to find a decent shop that wouldn't be swamped with hunters. The reviews on it shop weren't exactly great, but it would have to do.

Max walked through the door which opened with a little jingle.

His gaze traveled across the shop, roaming over the massive assortment of pants, belts, and other garments before landing on the shopkeeper, a middle-aged man with red hair, who was happily sleeping at his desk.

' _Okay, the guy's asleep. Maybe I can swipe some somethin-no wait…he's obviously got cameras. Dammit. There goes that option.'_

Max's eye twitched. He did not (literally) run here from the other side of the city, avoid eight police patrols, and run into a politician just to come up empty-handed because this shopkeeper decided to take a nap.

The silverette calmly walked over to the shopkeeper, duly noting a small puddle of drool coming out of the man's mouth. He not-so-gently prodded the man's shoulder.

"Hey. Hey, asshole. Wake the hell up. It's not even past eight dude, get your life together."

"Mmmm, Katie not so loud, you'll wake the kids. Heh heh heh…" The man mumbled in his sleep.

"Hmmm," Max sighed and slammed his hand down right next to the man's ear, "Wake the hell up!"

The shopkeeper jolted upright with wide eyes, "Ohgodsnotthereweneveragreedon-" the redhead froze when his eyes locked with Max's, whose brow was raised in curiosity.

The man gulped, red in the face and clearly embarrassed about…something, and asked, "W-what time is it?"

"Half past Seven."

"Oh, Gods Dammit! All I wanted was a twenty-minute nap! S-sorry kid, it's just been pretty slow week, I haven't gotten any new shipments, and my wife istryingto"experiment" ' 'tblameaguyforwantingtogetsomeshut-eye,righ-"

Max interrupted the man's rambling with a raised palm, "I don't really care dude, just chill out. And try talking a little slower, I can't buy shit if you suffocate or something."

"Oh, right. My bad," the man anxiously cleared his throat, "*Ahem* Welcome The Crim and Son's clothing Cache. Providing quality clothes at stellar prices for all your hunting needs since Nineteen Sixty Nine!" he said with a plastered-on smile.

"...What the fuc-"

"I'm contractually obligated to say that every time a customer comes in."

"I…Whatever. You got any coats left? I need something heavy duty."

"Sure," The man pointed to another section of the store, "T-they're on aisle four, right next to the gloves. Can't understand why you'd want one though. They've been out of season for a mont-oh, okay…just walk away. Not like I was trying to make conversation or *mumble mumble mumble*

' _Looks like I came to the right place.'_

The shelves were lined with all kinds of coats and outerwear, from light hoodies to massive parkas. Max wasn't sure what type he should get.

Parkas would be a little too bulky to move around in so they were out. Jackets were flexible but wouldn't provide much protection in the long run. Trench coats were out of the question, most of the ones in stock were too long for his tastes and way too easy to spot in a crowd.

Max scanned over the racks with 'The Third Eye' until he found something in particular that caught his eye.

 **[Fur-Hooded Bomber Jacket (Gray/Black/White) | Quality: Hunter]**

 **[Durability: Rank V | Cold Protection IV | Fireproof III | Fur lining]**

 **[Bonus Features: Large Pockets x6, Kevlar Fabric, Weight Holsters, Hidden ammo pouch]**

 **[Price: 4,599 Lien]**

It wasn't the most durable the store had to offer, nor was it the highest quality, but it was leagues ahead of his old gear. It was a bit pricey, but wouldn't been too much of a hit to his savings.

Max got the jacket off of its shelf and threw it over his shoulder. His little shopping trip wasn't quite over.

The boy picked up a few black and white T-shirts in addition to some extra jeans that went with his new jacket. He also grabbed a pair of gray steel-toed boots, making a complete outfit. However, there was one thing missing from his ensemble.

"You got any gloves left? I couldn't find any." he boredly asked the shopkeeper.

"O-oh, sorry kid, but we're out of standard-issue gloves. The only ones left are in the combat section of the store." the shopkeeper led Max to a locked away section of the store, "It's kingdom policy that the more advanced gear is locked away, to keep any ner-do-wells from getting to it and stuff."

' _Well, it ain't doing a very good job at it.'_ Max thought as the red-haired shopkeeper led him inside.

The room housing the combat gear was pretty small compared to the rest of the building, barely larger than the barracks back at the warehouse. But it more than made up for its size in the sheer amount of stuff on display.

The walls practically glistened with all sorts of combat gear, gauntlets, heavy-duty vests, holsters, tactical plating. It was the definition of a miniature armory.

Large masses of gear were sectioned off by brand names, puzzling the boy. Since when did people produce combat gear like shoes. Sure it was extremely common for people to have _some_ type of protective gear, even civilians apparently, but this was a bit…much. Were warriors like him really that common? The notion was humbling in a way.

' _Now's not the time to get all introspective and shit. I've got gear to buy.'_

The silverette glanced at the shopkeeper from the corner of his eye, who kept a strong eye on him, obviously waiting for him to cause trouble. It would be wise not to stay longer than he had to.

Max looked over the dozens of types of gear, having to suppress 'The Third Eye' to keep from getting a headache. He noticed a pair of gloves that had light forearm plating attached, and a magnetic back holster.

The boy stanched his items off the shelf, making sure the shopkeeper clearly saw him, and walked to the register, the redhead right behind him.

"A-alright, your total comes up to 11,483 lien. Are you using cash or card?"

"Cash," The silverette said as he dug around 'The Pocket' for his money.

"…"

"..."

"So…" began the shopkeeper, "T-that gear you picked up, and the look on your face…You're a huntsman in training, aren't you?"

"...Yeah…what about it?"

The man looked away abashed, "S-sorry…it's just…I really wanted to be a huntsman when I was a kid. Saving lives, Rescuing Princesses, it is…was my dream, my life's goal. My father-"

"Were you going somewhere with this?" The boy interrupted with an uncomfortable look on his face.

"R-right. It's just…heartwarming to see someone so young, someone who's trying to make the world a better place, buy their gear from my little store. It puts a smile on my face, y'know." the man laughed, "Gods I must sound like an idiot…"

The silverette looked away from him, "Whatever…" he mumbled quietly. He handed the man his lien and raced to the fitting room, more than eager to leave the conversation.

 **[Lien Total: 93,278 » 81,795]**

"Hmm," the boy slid on his new jacket and stared at himself in the mirror. "Not too shabby." His new clothes were a little baggy, but that was far from a bad thing. The holster was a little snug but not uncomfortable.

He yanked Alpha out of 'The Pocket' with ease for once, obviously because of his new jacket and gave it a good once over.

It was in pretty bad shape. The blade was dulled and dented, the gun had long since jammed, and the pole was pretty beaten up. It was a miracle it hadn't broken in half.

' _Isn't there a weapon shop across the street.'_ the boy wondered as he slipped his beloved weapon on his back, hoping that it wouldn't fall off.

Satisfied, Max began to walk outside, his old outfit discarded in a trashcan nearby.

"H-hey kid, Wait!"

Max looked back at the shopkeeper with narrowed eyes, "What do you want?"

"Y-you should really take that off. I understand being eager to wear a new outfit, but it's never a good idea to wear something that thick during a heatwave."

The silverette looked at the man oddly, "Heatwave? What the hell are you talking about?" It felt pretty normal outside to him.

The shopkeeper gaped at the boy, "You seriously didn't notice!? It's over a hundred degrees out there! You should've been sweating bullets when you got here, Aura or not! If you go out for even a minute in that thing thenyoumightgetaheatstokeorsomething! Youcouldpassoutorevendie-"

"Whatever, I'm out of here."

"Are you even listening to me!?"

"No, not really."

The silverette left the store, trying to banish the previous conversation from his mind. He would worry about the whole heatwave thing later. He had a weapon to get fixed.

* * *

' _Huh, small world.'_ Max thought as he stood in front of the weapon body shop.

 **META'S METAL MAKERS: YOU DEALT IT, WE SMELT IT!**

' _I'm never going to get used to that stupid fucking catchphrase_.' mentally groaned Max.

"Out of my way brat." A man in a black hoodie shoved past him, agitating the wolf faunus.

"Watch where you're going! Damn cockbite." Max growled, causing the man to look back at him.

The hooded man seemed to stiffen as he looked at the boy and his arms began to shake beneath his jacket. He looked absolutely livid, well about as livid as a man in a hood could look. A small flash of green could be seen beneath his hood.

The man clenched his fists and stormed off. Max heard the man mumbling under his breath as he walked away, saying things like "Furry Bastard" and "Wolf Eared Prick". The boy wondered what the man's deal was, but wrote it off as another douche being racist.

The weapon shop's door opened with a small jingle, alerting the Blacksmith of Max's arrival.

"Hello There! Welcome to Meta's Metal Makers! You smelt it, we-"

"I've already been here dude, just lookin' for some upgrades." He pulled Alpha off of his back and handed it to Meta as proof.

Meta carefully examined the damaged spear, "Certainly looks like my handiwork...but the metal isn't very high quality. It should take about an hour to reforge with the super smelter, two if I reinforce it. That alone should bring you to about seven thousand lien, eleven thousand If I use the good stuff. You wanted some upgrades too, right?"

"Yeah," Max paused to think, "You got anything that can speed me up a bit?" he'd need all the extra speed he could get if he was going to survive "training" with Neo.

Meta grinned, "Of course! I've got just the thing you need! Be back in a second." with a bright smile the man retreated to the back of the store. He quickly returned holding some kind of large metal cylinder with a strange opening on one end. The blacksmith sat it on the counter with shining eyes and hands proudly on his hips.

"Well!? What do you think?" the man was absolutely beaming. It was kind of unsettling to be honest.

"...What the hell is it?"

"Ohho~ Only the Merlot Series Propulsion Unit J6-24, Model eight point two! Produced by the world renowned RPC-Tour weapon supplier! It's got a Crystal Type Monopropellant-"

"In English!"

"What's English?"

Max groaned and pinched his nose, "Just…tell me what it does. And keep it short, I don't really give a shit about that other stuff."

The blacksmith slumped his shoulders, "*Sigh* It's basically a mini-rocket attachment. Helps speed up your attacks 'n junk. It's nothing too powerful, but it works. It'll cost you about ten thousand, give or take."

The silverette cringed. He knew it would be worth it in the long run, but still. That was a pretty big chunk out of his savings, but it would pay him back in the long run he supposed. The better his weapon was, the easier time he would have earning that money back.

Max nodded to himself, "I'll take all that stuff you talked about. Hell, add in an upgrade to my gun too."

"Alright!" Meta looked to be in a little better mood, "Reforging, Caliber enhancement, on top of a weapon attachment…That brings you to 23,851 Lien." The boy handed the blacksmith the money and, with a surprisingly heavy heart, Alpha.

 **[Lien Total: 81,795 » 57,944]**

"Your order will take about three hours, closer to two if my apprentice shows up today." And with that Meta left for the forgery, Max's beloved spear in hand.

' _Apprentice? Whatever, doesn't matter anyway.'_

* * *

 **About an hour later**

Max dug around the shelf in the center aisle of the shop, dead set on finding his target.

' _C'mon, They've got to have at least one comic in this damn store!'_ He was so focused on his search that he failed to notice the commotion heading his way, despite his enhanced hearing.

"Yaaang, hurry up! We're gonna be late!" yelled an extremely energetic girl, whose voice carried all the way to the store despite being a good distance away.

"C'mon Ruby, we *Pant* still have an hour! Slow down!" pleaded an older sounding girl tiredly.

 ***SLAM***

The door was slammed open violently, a red and black blur racing through it.

"LOOK OUT!"

"The Hell-?" Max reflexively turned toward the panicked shout only for his vision to be filled with red. In a flash the red blur crashed into the silverette's torso, knocking the breath out of Max and sending both him and it flying in opposite directions.

"Gah!"/"Oof" both Max and the blur said respectively as they hit the ground.

The boy groaned as his vision swam. The impact didn't pierce his Aura, nor did it injure him, but it still stung like hell.

"Oh, my gosh! Ruby, are you okay!?" said a…yellow blob? No that wasn't right…

Max sat up on his elbows in order let his vision adjust and to get a better view of the speaker. The first thing he saw was the blob, no, person who ran into him. A girl with black and red hair who appeared to be a few years younger than him. She was nursing her obviously aching head while a girl, much closer to his age, with very long blonde hair stood over her worriedly.

"-Nothing Broken right? Right!?"

"Sis! I'm fine, geez. You're worse than dad sometimes." pouted the younger of the two as her sister helped her to her feet. As the girl caught her bearings she noticed Max, who was slowly getting up.

"*Gasp* Oh no, I'm so sorry!" she held her hand out to help the silver-haired boy up, "I was just in a hurry and lost control of my semblance and stuff and…and…Ah geez are you okay?" the girl trembled slightly. She was still new to the whole social interaction thing.

Max ignored the girls outstretched hand and dusted himself off. He leveled the silver-eyed girl with a light glare and growled, "Watch where the hell you're going!" He wasn't all that loud or nasty, but the red/black-haired girl flinched nevertheless.

The blonde next to her immediately jumped to her sister's defense, stepping up to Max, "Chill out, jerk! She said it was an accident! What the heck is your problem?"

"Yang, please. It's not that big of a deal." the silver-eyed girl pleaded. Her dad would be furious if Yang got into another fight this week.

"No, it's not. You apologized, the least he could do is respect that."

Max rolled his eyes, "Fuck off, Blondie." he went back to looking for comics.

"Why you-!"

The red one, Ruby, gently grabbed her sister's arm and pulled her away from the silverette, "Really sorry for the trouble," she smiled nervously and guided her sister to another part of the store, the girl in question giving Max a red-eyed glare.

' _...Weirdos.'_ Pot calling the kettle black right there.

* * *

 **Another hour or so Later**

"Alright, Kid. Here you go! One new and improved spear courtesy of yours truly! Careful, it's a little warm." Meta said as he handed the shining weapon to Max.

The first thing he noticed was Alpha's weight. It was heavier, a lot heavier, something Max attributed to the rocket. The metal felt different as well, cleaner somehow. He could swing it around well enough, but to would take some getting used to before he could operate it to its fullest.

There was a small slider added to the middle of the blade, most likely for the rocket attachment. It looked like a completely different weapon, to be honest.

* * *

 **[Alpha MK 2 (Silver Spear) | Quality: Hunter | Damage: x2.6 | (Stab/Slash/Shoot/Boost) ]**

 **[Mecha-Shift: Shotgun-Spear (Pump Action 2) | Add-On(s): Mid-Tier Dust Rocket (Current Fuel 100% : Ice Dust Crystal) ]**

 **[(Usable) Stat Requirements: 55 STR/62 DEX/ 48 AGL]**

 **[(Optimal) Stat Requirements: 98 STR/111 DEX/ 82 AGL]**

* * *

' _At least I can move around with it this time.'_ Thought Max as he slid the weapon on his back. No more having to deal with his crappy old holster every time he wanted to get his only good weapon.

The boy cracked his neck and left the weapon shop with little fanfare, as there was nothing else for him to do. As he walked away, he received a bland goodbye from Meta.

"Thank you for coming to Meta's metal works. Stay safe out there." The boy noted that the blacksmith didn't say "please come again" or hand him a coupon like last time. He wasn't too broken up about it though, his only concern was getting back home in one piece.

Max saw a small crowd of people, most likely huntsmen in training, coming near and decided to take the alley across from Meta's. The fewer people who saw his face the better.

*Tap* *Tap* *Tap*

The boy briskly walked down the alley. A bad feeling went down his spine. Something big was about to go down around here, and he didn't want to be around it see it.

*Tap* *Tap* *Tap*

Max's eyes shot to attention. Was he being followed or something? He looked behind his back, no one back there. So then where was that noise coming from?

"Well, well, well. Look what we have here." chimed a vaguely familiar voice in a nasty tone.

The silverette looked forward. It was that weird guy he ran into in front of Meta's. Where the hell did he come from?

The hooded man clenched his fists just as he did before. Although this time instead of leaving, he decided to take a short step toward Max, loud enough to echo through the entire alleyway.

Max's hands subconsciously slid into his pockets, "Get the hell outta my way, Jackass. I ain't selling shit, so if you're looking for your _fix_ then take your ass downtown or something." he growled out. He didn't have time for this crap. It was about time for his "training" with Neo and he did not want to piss off Roman again.

"You sound a little…tilted Dog Breath! Hehehe…" the man's teeth were visibly clenched, despite his laughter.

' _Dog Breath?'_ That little insult sounded familiar. Did he…know this guy?

"Something wrong, Dog-Breath!? You lose your chew toy or something!? Bury you precious bone somewhere you couldn't find it!? Huh! HUH!" The man was beginning to pant from shouting so passionately.

"..." Max calmly gripped Alpha's handle. Looks like he might have to bust it out sooner than he thought.

"WELL!? What's wrong you canine bastard!? Too angry to come up with one of those shitty quips of yours!? Or is your little dog brain too dumb to make words anymore!? COME ON! SAY SOMETHING!" The man was worked up enough to make his hood fall off, revealing a very familiar-looking mop of greasy green hair.

' _Dammit! Where the hell have I seen this guy?'_

The greasy-haired man practically snarled at the look on the boy's face, "And you don't even recognize me! The man you humiliated time and time again! I bet you don't even remember my name! Hehehe….HAHAHAHAH!"

"..." Max shifted into a battle stance. This guy clearly had some screws loose. He was obviously preparing to attack, but didn't seem to care if Max noticed.

"It doesn't matter if you know my name or not!" The man tore off his jacket and balled it up in his fist, "Either way you're going straight to HELL!"

The man threw the balled-up jacket at Max with a surprising amount of speed. The boy easily dodged the projectile, already being used to reacting to faster things.

The jacket landed somewhere behind Max with a metallic crunch as if something were inside. The haggard man ran his hands through his hair and laughed. He reached behind his back and pulled out one of Junior's regulation swords and pointed it at the boy.

"This time will be different Dog-Breath! This time I'll make **you** suffer! No Junior to make me tap out! No Cage! No witnesses! Just ME AND YOU!" With that final proclamation, the man charged at the silverette, sword low ready to cut the boy in half.

' _The Cage!? Wait a minute…that hair…humiliating him…I remember!'_

Max removed Alpha from its holster and knocked away the man's blade with ease, eliciting a scream of rage from the man.

The greasy man attacked again, putting too much energy into his slash, allowing the boy to evade and slip behind him. "H-how did you-Gah!" Max interrupted the man by whacking him hard against the head, launching him back toward his jacket.

Max took this opportunity to activate the Third Eye while the man was down, confirming his suspicions.

 **[Gary Green | Level 12 | HP: 406/510 | Aura: Inactive]**

"Gary…" he growled. Of all the people to show up and annoy him, he never expected this guy would rear his scrawny head again. Though scrawny wasn't an apt description anymore.

"So NOW you remember my name, mutt! A lotta good that'll do you!" Gary began to rummage through his pockets.

Max relaxed and rested Alpha's tip on the ground. The man clearly wasn't much of a threat. Hell, the boy could easily picture himself knocking the snot out of Gary without his weapon, not that he wanted to try.

"Are you dense or something? You can't beat me, you never will. Just save yourself the embarrassment and go home." The boy hoisted Alpha in his shoulder and walked away, not seeing the feral smirk that appeared on Gary's face.

"You stupid mutt! I'm not here to _beat_ yo **u**. I' **m** h **e** r **e** t **o** _K_ _ **I**_ _L_ _ **L**_ **y** o **u!** " A strange distortion appeared in the man's voice, prompting Max to turn around.

"What the hell?" The silverette gaped at his opponent.

Gary had some kind of syringe full of black fluid stabbed deep into his neck. He slowly pressed down on its plunger, wearing a Cheshire grin the whole time. His eye became even more crazed, the whites of his eyes rapidly turning black.

"H **a** h **a** h **a**! **H** A **HA** H **A**! **H** A **H** A **H** A **HAHA!** " His voice became more and more sinister and demonic as the mysterious fluid entered his body. Max could see veins on Gary's neck, face and hands begin to bulge out, slowly turning from the normal blue to a deep black.

The man threw away the now useless syringe and began to convulse and writhe. His eyes were bloodshot, and he was quietly groaning in pain, his body undergoing an excruciating transformation. But despite all this, despite the pain Max could _smell_ coming off the man in waves, he still wore that same dammed grin on his face.

"G **r** r **R** R **R** AH **AHAHA** " Gary finally got back to his feet, groaning and laughing at the same time. Hie seemed to be getting taller right in front of Max's eyes, his already thin shirt being pushed to its limit as his muscles more than quadrupled in size in a grotesque display of growth.

All the while Max stood there gaping at the man, he didn't know what to make of this…this monster the formerly scrawny man became. It was no Grimm, sure, but it was still pretty unsettling.

Gary ignored Max's disgusted look, favoring the idea of examining his…improved form. He towered above practically everyone now, a giant well over seven feet tall.

The newly born giant clenched and unclenched his now-massive fists, awed by the power he could feel under his torn, reddened skin and the superhuman levels of energy he felt coursing through his veins.

" **HAHAHA! What do you think of me now, mutt!? Taking me seriously yet!?** " Gary rasped with a dark, cruel smile.

Max responded by getting back into his battle stance and channeling Hyper Awareness. He quickly activated 'The Third Eye' to get a read on his opponent.

 **[Gary Green | Level 12 | HP: 1546/1650 | Aura: Inactive]**

Max broke out in a cold sweat.

' _SHIT! Whatever the hell that stuff was, it gave him one hell of a boost! He's not as tough as Neo…'_ He braced himself and brought up Alpha defensively, _'But he could still kill me If I ain't careful.'_

Gary smiled at the disturbed look in Max's eyes, " **I'll take that as a yes!** " The giant rushed the silver-haired boy with a shocking amount of speed for someone his size, hand reared back.

The boy brought up Alpha in defense, but the blow still knocked him back. Gary tried to launch another haymaker at the boy, which he dodged, if just barely. Max was still a bit faster, despite the man's "enhancements".

Max dashed under Gary's hulking arms and stabbed it deep in the man's side, bringing forth a guttural howl from the giant. The boy grunted and dashed just out of his range, firing the gun in his spear.

Gary took the blast right to the face. It definitely did some damage, but the giant didn't look like he was going down anytime soon

Max attempted another slash, but his weapon was caught and harshly yanked out of his hands by the giant. Gray just smirked and tossed the weapon over his shoulder like a used toy. " **No weapons, mutt! Just you and me! Just like in the good old days!** "

The man charged at Max with a quick shoulder bash, which the boy not-so-nimbly dodged. He ducked low and sweep kicked the Giant's enlarged leg, causing him to fall flat on his face.

Not skipping a beat, Max yanked a knife out of 'The Pocket' and stabbed it into the giant's back. _'That'll keep him down for a bit.'_ he hoped.

The boy raced over to his spear and cocked it, ready to end his opponent, but was surprised by a large hand wrapping around his neck and choking him.

The giant raised the struggling faunus in the air with an unhinged smile, " **I said NO WEAPONS!** " with that last word he slammed Max on the hard concrete ground directly on his tail. The man proceeded to grab the boy's head and slam it into the ground once more for good measure.

"*Groan*"

The man punched Max in the face, causing his aura to tremble, " **USELESS!** "

"*Gurhg*"

" **PATHETIC!** " Another punch, this time right on the chin.

" **WORTHLESS!** " The punches started coming faster and faster, whittling down Max's aura until it was almost broken.

" **INSIGNIF-** " The giant began, but was stopped when Max grabbed his fists, just barely holding him back. Gary smiled and increased the pressure, ecstatic at the sight of Max's trembling arms struggling to keep his as bay.

" **WHO'S THE SCRAWNY ONE NOW MUTT!?** "

"Still you, you damn Roid freak!" the boy grunted out. He couldn't hold on for much longer. He had to find an opening somehow.

' _There!'_ Max realized that his legs were still very free and very capable of kicking. So the boy decided to go for the cheapest shot available and shot his knee up as high as it could go, which was fortunately right between Gray's legs.

" **GAH!** " The giant shouted in extreme pain, giving Max the perfect opening to push him away into one of the walls in the alley. The giant lost his manic grin, trading it for a livid snarl.

" **YOU BASTA-** "

 ***Bang*** Max interrupted the man with a point-blank shotgun to the face, which despite everything didn't do much aesthetic damage. Max didn't let up, furiously stabbing away at the man's durable skin, turning his already burnt shirt to shreds.

" **You-YOU MAGGOT!** " The giant managed to gut-punch the boy between blows, giving that one extra push to break Max's Aura. The boy was sent staggering back, hit by a wave of exhaustion from his Aura being broken.

Gray tried to stand back up to his full height, but his knees began to buckle. The various wounds he sustained from Max, which were previously sealed up, began to bleed thick black ichor. His massive muscles began to tremble, slowly but surely shrinking.

" **No, No NO N** O **NO!** " the giant panicked" **She…s** h **e said I h** a **d more** **ti** m **e**!"

"*Huff* *Huff*" the steadily shrinking giant glared hatefully at the panting Max, "What's wrong Roid freak? Havin' some performance issues?" Apparently Max had done enough damage to start undoing…whatever that syringe had done.

" **Grr** r **rrr! Do** n **'t co** un **t me o** u **t j** u **s** t **y** e **t!** " Gary shakily pulled a small object from his pocket. Another one of those syringes!

' _Shit! Can't let him pop another one of those things!'_ Max looked down at Alpha and instantly activated his new rocket. Time for a test run.

Gary had the syringe up to his neck, almost ready to inject, when suddenly his arm was knocked away by Alpha with a flash of cold blue energy. More dark ichor leaked from the Giant's arm. He looked up and saw Max leaping toward him with his canine teeth bared.

" **I-I** W **ON** 'TB **E** -"

"Just shut up and go down already!" Growled out Max, Alpha's rocket roaring to life behind him and launching the weapon into the shrunken Giant's face, leaving a large trail of frost behind it.

" **N-no** o **o** o **o** ooo…" With that final strike, Gary was down for the count. His body began to deflate, and the hideous black ichor on his body immediately hardened, sealing his wounds for the most part.

The remaining black ichor on the ground sunk into the earth, not leaving a single trace of it ever being there. Though Max didn't notice this, as he was too busy coming down from his battle high.

' _I fight a guy twice my size and barely got roughed up…not too shabby, Max. Not. Too. Shabby.'_ Max inwardly patted himself on the back as he rested on his knees.

* * *

 **[Combat Ended: Gary Green ('Roided Up) Defeated | Rewards: 10,000 exp, 15,000 Lien]**

 **[Max Argentum: Level 27 (10,357/22,000) » Level 27 (20,357/22,000)]**

 **[Strength: 76 » 80 | Vitality: 90 » 93 | Constitution: 89 » 92 | Agility:** [ **1** ] **02 »** [ **1** ] **06 | Dexterity: 90 » 94 | Spirit: 43 » 44]**

 **[HP: 1,200/1,260 » 1,200/1,290 | SP: 368/1,210 » 368/1,240 |Aura: 0/1,075(0%) » 0/1,100(0%)]**

 **[Lien: 57,944 » 72,944]**

* * *

' _Alright then, time to end this.'_ Max slowly walked over to Gary's spot on the ground but ended up stepping on something hard and metallic sounding before he could.

"Huh" The boy looked down. It was Gary's jacket. Something bright red and shiny poked out from the inside. Curiously, Max picked the garment up examined the contents.

' _What in the…Woah, these parts look expensive. Like, super expensive. I could get a boatload of cash for this!'_

The silverette prepared to put the parts in 'The Pocket' but…

"THAT WAS SO COOL!" shouted a familiar energetic voice.

' _Damn it!'_

The girl Max ran into at the weapon shop ran up to him in a small shower of rose petals, _'Rudy? Rubie? Ah I'm too tired to care.'_

"You were all like Wahh~ Chaa~ Hyaa~" The girl in red made a bunch of faux kung-fu-like noises. Chopping and slashing at the air with a sparkle in her eyes.

The girl's sister walked up behind her and gave Max a suspicious look. "Those were some pretty decent moves…but you mind telling us what went down before we got here?"

Max chewed on his inner lip before answering, "This prick tried to mug me, steal my weapon and shit."

"Swear Jar!"

"Rubes, not now!"

"I told him to back off, he refused, and the rest is history. Satisfied blondie?"

The blonde girl crossed her arms, "I was going to complement your skills, but clearly you're too much of an as-" she looked over at her sister, who had an aura of death around her, "Clearly too much of a _butthead_ to appreciate it."

' _She isn't exactly wrong…fuck I'm tired.'_

The red/black-haired girl stood there awkwardly as her sister grumbled until she caught sight of the bundle in Max's lap. Eyes brightening, she snatched the parts up and…nuzzled them.

"MY BABIES! I looked for you little guys for so long you couldn't imagine! OH, I'm so glad you're safe!"

The blonde stared at the silverette with renewed suspicion and placed her hands on her hips, "Ya mind explaining?"

Max raised his arms up in "surrender", "They were in that guy's jacket, swear." Max didn't need to make up a lie for that one. "I was gonna drag the guy down to the police station. Y'know, bask in the victory for a second."

' _Which I would be able to do if you decided to piss off.'_

"Hmmm…okay. C'mon sis, let's get back home. Dad said that he had some Yang-Tastic cookies in the oven."

"Awesome! Race you to the airships!"

"Oh, come on, that's not fair! Wait up!"

Max watched the two sisters run away with a bored expression. "What a couple of weirdos…" Again, pot calling the kettle black.

The boy walked over to Gary and hoisted the man over his shoulders. Maybe Roman would know what to do with him.

He knew exactly what Roman would do, and it would be much easier to cut out the middleman and end the prick right there. But Max was already stressed enough for one day. Murder would only add fuel to the fire.

So he made another trek across the city of Vale that day, with Gary, who looked much, much thinner than before, on his back the whole time. This accidentally gave him an opportunity to get a close look at the hardened black goo covering the man on his shoulders. And with this opportunity came a question, one that would play in Max's mind on repeat for weeks.

' _What the hell are you…?'_

* * *

 **Alright So let me elaborate on a few things before I get a hate comment. Max is an asshole, that's his character. Everything and everyone in the story acknowledges this in some way shape or form. Max is an asshole who is training to be a Mafioso under Roman Torchwick, Ruby and Yang are genuinely good people training to become the world's defenders.**

 **They're practically opposite characters, Ruby and Max in particular. Them getting along, especially after that 1** **st** **impression, wouldn't make sense, especially since Max knows jack shit about Remnant (or the Show) besides what he's learned in this story.**

 **Rest assured, this won't become one of those odd Team RWBY/JNPR bashing fics. I like them all as characters and bash fics aren't my cup of tea. But expect there to be some kind of conflict between Max's group and the Heroes.**

 **I'm definitely going to get some opposition/lost readers for this decision, which I understand and I will not exactly hold it against you if you are in that crowd, but I want Max to have a different dynamic with every canon character, and I feel like this is a good start to that.**

 **Alright, that's everything I've got to say. Happy 2020 people. The calendar doesn't need glasses anymore…joy.**


	18. Chapter 16: Rising Tensions

**Less than a Hero, More than a Gamer**

 **Chapter 16**

* * *

Roman was really starting to get sick of his subordinates.

It was always a pain in the neck to get a hold of Neo during one of her hissy fits, especially with her rage-inducing semblance. Sure, it was technically his fault, he had trained her after all, but it was annoying regardless.

Said pain in the neck was sitting next to him in the training room (if you could call it that) with her arms crossed and an exaggerated pout on her face.

Why was she always like this? Roman had made sure that she was stubborn growing up, but there was a thin line between being stubborn and being immature, a line Neo had crossed more often than he liked.

The stylish man sighed. Whatever, she would come around eventually. At least she was strong enough to hold her own for now. His other subordinates...not so much, especially the newbie.

Roman checked his watch. It's been a good half an hour since he called Max back from his little shopping spree. He should've been back already. Had someone attacked him? It was likely, but the boy had a reputation for being tardy. Max was probably chomping down on pizza like usual, taking his sweet time getting back.

"Hey, Neo."

"?"

The ginger had a mischievous smile on his face, silently telling Neo that he wasn't being serious "You have permission to use your weapon during training today. And before you get all worked up, no, you cannot use your blade on the kid. We're trying to train him not kill him."

The multicoloured girl pretended to sulk at this and turned away, but Roman saw a bit of tension leave her shoulders. She had finally started coming around. It wasn't much, but it was something.

' _She's learning, good.'_ Roman's thoughts shifted to Max and the twins, _'Now if I could get those three into shape then we might be able to survive what's coming.'_

A quiet bang came from the other side of the warehouse. The twins were resting from their own training, and Maverick was still locked in his lab. The only other person with entrance clearance that would come around this time of day Max.

Roman got to his feet, "Took the brat long enough," the man waved his hand at Neo, signaling her to follow him, "C'mon, let's fill him in on the agenda for tonight."

The duo made their way toward the sound of Max's footsteps, which were surprisingly slow considering the boy's above average speed. Roman's hand subconsciously shifted toward the trigger on his cane. Neo's hand glided a tad closer to Hush in response.

They rounded the corner to see a ragged-looking Max, who looked like a deer caught in headlights.

Max shifted his weight and looked them in the eyes, "Ummm, hey..." he said as if he didn't have a body slung over his shoulder.

Roman and Neo starred at the boy, the former glowering at the boy silently asking for an explanation and the latter placing a hand on her hip with the same sentiment.

"I'll explain in a bit," sighed Max. He grabbed the man on his shoulder with one hand and effortlessly threw him at Roman's feet, "I need to catch my breath for a sec. Ya' mind, bossman?"

Roman took a curious glance at the boy. His hair looked mangled, more so than usual, as were his new clothes, which appeared to be hunter quality. His posture was slouched, his breaths shallow, and his weapon's blade stained. Telltale signs of battle.

He looked down at the man Max threw at him. The brat got roughed up by someone like this? The guy looked way too scrawny and weak to touch any of them, even Maverick. There had to be something else at play…

Roman looked at Max who sat against a wall wiping sweat off his brow. He would get his answers eventually, one way or another.

* * *

Roman, Max, and Neo stood in a circle around a large table Neo somehow managed to smuggle from a nearby store. The now-awake Gary was tied up and gagged nearby, spewing muffled curses at Max.

The two master criminals stared awkwardly at Max, who looked confused for a second before perking up and digging into his 'Pocket'. He took out a rather large syringe that contained flecks of a strange writhing black fluid and set it on the table, in addition to several smaller syringes which were completely full save for a few.

Neo looked at the syringes curiously, absentmindedly poking one, while Roman narrowed his eyes at them.

"The roid freak over there" Max began while pointing at Gary, eliciting another string of curses, "had a metric fuckton of these things on him. I saw him shove that big one in his neck. Next thing I knew the bastard was huge and tryin' to kill me."

Neo flashed her scroll, _"Define Huge."_

"Seven feet tall, Probably a little over."

"!"

Roman picked up the syringe and examined it, "Hmmmm. Did he say anything about where he got it. There's no way he got a drug like that from one of the dealers downtown." _'And he didn't get it from MacRein, selling stuff like this isn't his MO.'_

Max pursed his lips, "I was kinda busy trying not to get my damn skull crushed. But now that I think about it, he did mention a 'she'. Something about a time limit. I didn't pay too much attention to it though."

Roman put a hand to his chin. This was starting to sound familiar. "How strong was he before he took this stuff?" He asked.

Max closed his eyes, "Pretty average to be honest, barely enough to kill some small beowolves. He was pretty shit with a sword too. Barely worth fighting"

"And after he took this little…wonder drug of his?"

The boy lightly clenched his fist, "The bastard had me beat in raw strength by a long shot. His skin toughened up a bunch too. My spear could barely cut 'im. He was fast as hell too, but he couldn't out-speed me." there was a tiny flicker of pride in Max's eye at that last part.

Roman absentmindedly tossed the syringe in the air and re-caught it, "That strong, huh? This really is some kind of wonder drug…"

Max shook his head in response, "Not really. After the roid freak when through his little _transformation,_ his veins started turnin' black. On the way back here he kept having seizures, I think. He was coughing up this black stuff too. I had to take off my jacket to keep it from getting messed up."

The orangette nodded, " I see. Thanks for the info, I'll have to get Maverick to take a look at him. But first…" Roman looked at Neo, "Neo, be a pal and untie our scrawny _friend_ over there."

Max's eyes shot to Roman, "What!?"

Neo rolled her eyes, knowing where Roman was going with this, and with a mock salute walked over to Gary.

She carefully pulled the gag out of the scrawny man's mouth, making sure not to touch the…slimy parts. Gary began to open his mouth, but Neo pulled Hush out and pointed its blade between his eyes.

She put a finger to her lips with a small smile on her face and moved behind Gary to undo his bindings. The man didn't move a muscle.

Neo casually tossed aside Gary's chains and teleported to the other side of the room. She wanted to get a good view of what was going to happen next.

Gary slowly got to his feet, having to rest on his knees because of how hard he was panting. He looked up to the sight of Roman holding Melodic Cudgel with a bored look on his face and Max who stood next to him.

The green-haired man growled in a manner similar to the faunus he hated, "You useless mutt! I get it now! Couldn't beat me on your own, so you called one of your sympathizer friends to help! You're more pathetic than I thought!"

The boy scoffed, "Whatever helps you sleep at night, Roid Freak." 'Did that weird drug make him delusional or something?'

Gary clenched his fists at Max's flippant attitude. How dare he look down at his betters!

Roman stepped a little closer to the greenette, "You must really have a problem with the brat, huh? Can't say I blame you, he's a real pain in the ass sometimes."

' _Well screw you too. Fuckin' Jackass.'_

The greenette shakily pointed at Roman, "Get out of my way, you ginger piece of shit! I'm only after the faunus brat. So get you and your stupid hat out of my way!"

Said ginger scowled, "And here I thought the two of us could be friends…" _'He really doesn't know who I am. Good.'_

Max stepped forward and grasped Alpha's handle, "If you're lookin' for a rematch then-" Roman held his hand in front of Max, stopping him. The boy looked up at Roman, who had a predatory glint in his eye. He let go of Alpha and moved behind the man. _'What the hell is he up to?'_

"I can't let you beat up one of my employees so easily," Roman rolled his shoulder and smirked at Gary, "So that's gonna be a no from me."

"Then you-"

"But!" Roman interrupted, "I do have an offer for you. One I think could be enjoyable for both of us."

Gray arched an eyebrow at Roman. What was he going on about?

Roman smirked and said, "If you can land one solid punch right here," he pointed to his cheek, "I'll let you have the brat. I'll even knock him out for you If you want."

Max growled in indignation, "What the hell!? Have you gone crazy or somethin'!?" the boy hissed. Was Roman really placing his life on a bet!?

The ginger looked back at Max and smiled, "Don't worry about a thing brat…" the man cracked his neck and stared Gary dead in the eye. The man in question began to shake. There was something…off about the well-dressed man in front of him. Something dark, twisted, cruel.

An invisible pulse went through the air with Roman at the center of it, Aura flickering. It didn't have much force behind it at all, but Max and Gary felt almost compelled to step back in fear.

Even Neo couldn't suppress a shiver of fear going down her spine. Maverick, who was all the way in his lab, felt his body shiver. The twins stirred in their sleep from the other side of the warehouse.

Meanwhile, Roman was tightening his gloves with a small, almost cheerful look on his face. But eyes shone with cold orange light.

"...He won't be able to even scratch me." The orangette boasted.

Gary was unknowingly shivering. He looked to the ground with his fists balled like those of a helpless child, _'I'm going to die. I'm going to di-'_

"Hey, _friend_."

The greenette flinched and looked up to the strong build of Roman Torchwick, who had practically materialized in front of him. He started running away but was caught by the arm by Torchwick, whose smile never left his face.

"Relax, man. I just came here to give you some of these," Roman held a few of the smaller syringes in his hand, "You're going to need them."

Gary yanked them out of Roman's hand with sweat pouring down his face. He quickly backed away with his teeth bared and the syringes gripped in his hands. The man pointed at Roman, hand quivering in rage, "You bastard! THINK YOU'RE BETTER THAN ME, HUH!? HUH!?"

Roman tipped his bowler hat and said, "I don't think I'm better than you, I know I am. Now take that little steroid of yours so we can get this over with."

The greenette growled, "You're gonna regret letting me go, you BASTARD!" He took the syringes in his hand, one in his left, two in his right, and stabbed them into his neck. He pressed down on the plungers with a grin, eager to destroy the man in front of him and get his revenge.

The whites of Gary's eyes turned a sinister red. His veins bulged and twitched, slithering around his body like snakes. A large popping sound was heard, and the man hunched over. He coughed up a strange black ichor and spat it on the floor.

"HA HA HA *Cough* *Cough* HAHAH **A** H **A** HAH **AHA**! B **ET** TER S **A** Y YO **UR** PR **A** YE **R** S, **F** AUN **US** B **RAT**! **S** O **O** N IT' **S** GO **NNA** BE Y **O** UR T **UR** N TO F **A** CE **MY** AW **ES** OME **PO** W **ER**!"

Roman looked at his subordinate with a cocked eyebrow, "Was he always this crazy?"

Max crossed his arms, "Don't think so. The guy was a dumbass, sure, but he was pretty sane. That drug is probably what's pushing him off the deep end. That or I knocked his brain loose or somethin'."

"Good to know."

Gary's muscles began to contort and shift, rapidly increasing in size and density with the sickening sound of crunching bones. His blacked veins became even more pronounced. His skin reddened, busting open along the cuts Max made with Alpha earlier. Black blood spilled out of them and immediately hardened into a dark crust.

Max and Neo cringed at the sight, the former clutching his sensitive nose because of the smell. It was disgusting, foul, but familiar in more ways than one.

The greenette's hideous transformation continued. His spine jutted out in small, creating sharp bumps that nearly broke his skin. His arms vibrated and all of a sudden his bones extended, and large flat bone spikes broke through his forearms with a scream of pain.

The man panted, slumping his now-massive shoulders. The transformation had completed. He was reborn and stronger than ever.

Roman looked the man up and down, "Damn, kid. You weren't joking about the height thing. He's gotta be at least seven-five."

Max gripped Alpha's blade and was torn between attacking the reformed giant or stabbing Roman with it. "YOU DUMBASS! HE'S STRONGER THAN HE WAS WHEN WE FAUGHT! ARE YOU TRYIN' TO GET US KILLED OR SOMETHING, YOU DENSE SONNOFABITCH!?"

" **I have to agree with the brat on that.** " Gary said, his voice several times deeper than before, " **It does look like you have a death wish, giving me this much power. But don't worry, I'd be more than happy to kill the both of you!"**

Torchwick shook his finger in a scolding manner, "Tsk, Tsk. Don't get too hasty. You still remember my proposition, right? One punch. Right here. How about it?"

The giant smirked, " **Alright, I'll take your bet, ginger** ," He cracked his enlarged knuckles, " **One punch and the brat's mine?** "

"No strings attached, pal."

" **Alright then! I'm probably strong enough to end you in one hit anyway, but I'll humor you for now,** " the giant tensed his shoulders and reared back his fist, " **This'll be over in a flash!** "

Roman smiled "innocently", "You're right about that one, pal."

Gary charged at the orangette with a guttural roar, not noticing the look on the master criminal's face.

Neo was watching this with a small bag of popcorn she got from…somewhere and a smile on her face, _'Here it comes…'_

The giant's fist flew forward with a small crack of displaced wind on a direct course to Roman's face. However, a blur that only one other person in the room could track went into its path, stopping the giant's attack completely.

" **W-what!?"**

One of Roman's hands effortlessly blocked Gary's fist in its tracts, while the other spun Roman's prized hat on a single finger.

"Is that it?" Roman said, placing his hat back on his head, "I was expecting more than that. You're taking this seriously aren't you?"

Gary withdrew his fist and swung again, " **DON'T MOCK ME!** "

However, his attack met the same result as the first, easily blocked by a bored-looking Roman, and with the same hand no less!

The giant attacked again and again to the same effect, trying to pummel the orangette and kicking up a small wind to no avail.

Roman batted away a haymaker, "I hope you aren't taking this seriously," he swerved around a punch, "Because if you are then this is already over," he ducked under a wild swing and **flicked** the giant's arm, which miraculously caused Gary to recoil in pain.

The orangette smiled at the look of fear in Gary's eyes. He popped his knuckles and, at the speed of a bullet, launched his gloved fist into the giant's stomach. A weak shockwave tore through the air from the impact, rustling the nearby Max's hair.

' _Insane…'_ the boy thought as Roman removed his fist from the giant's gut with a satisfied look on his face.

Gary's cheeks bulged and he coughed up a glob of black saliva, clutching his aching stomach. He looked down at the…the…freak who had hit him. The bastard had that some bored look on his face as if Gary wasn't worth his time.

Roman snorted, "One punch and you're shaking in your boots? I guess your bite couldn't match your bark."

" **I-I'm not scared of you! Just you wait, I'll-** "

"Shut up, amateur."

Roman jabbed the giant in the stomach thrice more at lightning speed, kicking up more dust and sending the giant falling to his knees. He coughed up more dark bile than before, barely able to hold himself up.

' _ **I…I refuse to-'**_ Gary looked up and froze. Roman stood over him, fist drew back and mouth settled into a grin.

"Do me a favor and die, 'kay thanks." The master criminal's fist soared into Gary's jaw, causing spit to fly out of his mouth and the distinct sound of crushing bones to echo through the room.

The giant was sent flying several feet in the air, pain blossoming in his empty eyes. He was unconscious before he even hit the ground.

Roman withdrew his smoking fist, "Finally, I thought that moron would never shut up." he said plainly.

Max gaped at his employer, _'What…what the hell!? How did he…so easily too,'_ Max looked to the side, _'Dammed moron.'_

The orangette looked at his gloomy subordinate and asked, "What's with the sour look, you mad I stole your kill or something?"

The boy growled, "You released the guy I busted my ass to take down, offered my fucking life to him on a **bet** , and powered the fucker up. So excuse me for not bein' all sunshine 'n rainbows."

Roman ran a hand through his hair and sighed, "You're missing the bigger picture, brat. I **had** to see what that drug of his could do, to find out what we're dealing with." the man twirled his grin with an arrogant gleam in his eyes, "Besides, it's not like that stuff could put him even close to my level."

"Are you serious!? I told you what he could do with just one of those things, and your dumbass gave him three! What if-"

"Catch." Roman threw one of the discarded syringes to Max, who easily caught it.

"What the-"

"Not another word, brat," Roman motioned to the table, "You remember the one he took when you two fought. Notice anything about it?"

Max scowled, "Yeah, it was a lot bigger than...oh." _'Damn, I must've been too tired to notice. Fuck, I'm a moron sometimes.'_

Roman crossed his arms, "Yeah, _oh_. I'll give you a pass this time. You're still pretty new to this line of work, and you did look pretty tired when you got here. But remember this, keep a keen eye no matter what state you're in. It doesn't matter how tired you are or how safe you feel, always stay on guard," He smirked and looked to the ceiling, "Just a bit of wisdom from the flawless Roman Torchwick."

Max's eye twitched, _'I don't know which is stronger, his power or his ego._ '

The boy felt a light tap on his shoulder. He turned to the side to see Noe, who flashed her scroll at him, _"He stole that from a movie."_ she typed with a cheshire smile on her lips.

The orangette saw this interaction and cleared his throat, "Even so, my point still stands. All the more reason to amp up your training. Speaking of which," he pointed at Gary, who had shrunken to normal size and covered in that odd black ichor, "Neo, be a _dear_ and escort our guest to Maverick for testing. When you're done grab the twins and come back ASAP."

Neo nodded to her boss and warped away with Gary in tow, leaving Max and Roman alone in silence.

"Now brat," Roman began, catching Max's attention.

"Tell me, what do you know about Aura?"

* * *

 **Three Days Later**

' _In.'_ Max took a long intake of air through his mouth.

' _Out.'_ He exhaled through his nose.

The silver-haired warrior sat in a meditative position in the center of the training room with his eyes closed and his hands resting on his thighs. His sliver aura flickered with every breath.

' _In.'_

' _Out.'_

Roman explained how crucial meditation was to Aura training. Yes, constantly having one's Aura broken was a viable way to strengthen it, but was a very inferior method of training to Meditation.

' _In.'_

' _Out.'_

"Aura is more spiritual than physical. There's no point in strengthening your soul if you can't properly grasp it." Roman told Max and the Twins. It _was_ another movie quote, as Neo pointed out, but the trio got the message all the same.

' _In.'_

' _Out.'_

The trio had integrated meditation into their daily training. Neo would beat train them in the day and assist their meditation while their bodies recovered in the night. Though using the word assist was generous. Most of the time she would sit somewhere nearby, playing on her phone. But on the occasions she decided to help…well…

' _In.'_

' _Ou-'_

 ***BANG BANG BANG BANG***

Max opened one eye sourly and saw Neo holding a metal pot in one hand and Hush in another. She had been doing this for the past twenty minutes, and it was starting to piss Max off.

The twins, who were training with him, were already past that point.

"Ugh!" Melanie exclaimed with her hands on her hips, "Could you, like, stop that? It's messing with my _Feng Shoe-e_!"

"Sister means Feng Shui," Milita said in her usual monotone.

Melanie turned to her sister, "Hump, as if you know what Feng Shoe-e is." she said haughtily.

"Do you?"

"This isn't about me Millie!"

"I disagree."

Max stared at the bickering siblings and slumped his shoulders, _'Do those two ever stop arguing? Honestly, seein' stuff like this makes me feel like a dumbass for wanting a brother.'_

Neo inaudibly sighed and dropped the objects in her hands, catching the other three's attention. The multicolored girl shrugged her shoulders dramatically and with the sound of cracking glass summoned the words, _Just Trying to Help out_ , over her head.

"How about, like, advice or something?" Melanie half asked, half demanded. Milita nodded in agreement and Max found he felt similar. _'Some actual help would be nice.'_ he thought morosely.

Neo smiled challengingly. They wanted advice, huh? She was more than happy to oblige, but they would have to work a little before they got anything. Roman didn't give **her** any freebies, so Neo wouldn't give **them** any.

The mute girl snapped her fingers, causing a strange diagram to appear in front of Max and the Twins. It showed a pair of binoculars, a skeleton, and stick figures of the tree of them.

Max looked around it at Neo, "Are you screwing with us?" he asked. The girl nodded happily, clearly satisfied with herself, eliciting a groan from the boy.

The twins examined the graph carefully. Melanie placed a hand in her palm in realization, "OH! You want us to look inside ourselves, right?"

Neo clapped and snapped her hands once more, replacing the diagram with a picture of a target. _'Bullseye!'._ She walked closer to them with her scroll in-hand, beckoning them to lean closer, which they did.

" _Can you feel that weird ball of energy in your gut that comes out when you use your Aura?"_

The trio nodded.

" _Well, just focus on that and let your soul do the rest. Kay?"_ The girl threw a peace sign at them and teleported away.

Max's eye twitched, _'That wasn't very helpful. But it was something.'_ The boy resumed his meditative position. It wouldn't hurt to follow Neo's advice, even if said advice sucked.

' _Energy Ball, energy ball, energy ball. Gotta find it.'_

' _In.'_

' _Out.'_

A weak burst of wind from…somewhere brushed past Max's hair, but he ignored it.

' _In.'_

' _Out.'_

The boy's posture relaxed and his breaths became shallower but no less consistent.

' _In.'_

' _Out'_

A cold wave of power went through Max's spine. He felt a strange tingling sensation in his stomach. Not uncomfortable or unusual in the slightest, but rather warm, comforting, _familiar_.

' _Wait…I think…I think this is it. That energy Neo told us about. Okay then, all I gotta do is focus. Focus…Focus…'_

Max felt his mind slip away, along with his awareness of the outside world. But for some reason, the boy didn't feel compelled to fight it. Instead, he let himself drift away, passively being pulled away on the shivering yet warm river of his soul.

* * *

"What the hell…"

The boy found himself on his back looking up to a foggy night sky, watching snowflakes fly by at breakneck speeds. He pushed himself off the ground, pressing his fingers deep into the snow. Wait…snow?

Max looked to the ground, which was covered in a thick, many inch deep layers of snow. Now did he not notice it before, it must've been freezing cold for there to be any snow here, wherever 'here' was.

The boy looked around for any clues as to where he was. He seemed to be in some kind of valley, with impossibly large walls of ice on either side of him covered with countless bumps and cracks.

 _Where the hell am I?_

Max perked up. A voice, and a familiar one at that! But where did it come from? He looked around once more, searching for any other signs of life.

 _Is anyone there? He-llo?_

There it was again! Someone definitely spoke. But Max, for the life of him, couldn't see or smell anyone in the odd valley except for himself.

 _Where is that damn voice coming from_

The voice was breathy, soft, but Max could hear it loud and clear. It felt incredibly close, yet impossibly far at the same time, and seemed to be going through the same feelings he was. The exact same feelings, in fact.

Max spotted a glowing snowflake flying in front of him and caught it. He cradled it in his hands delicately, afraid that the wind would blow it away or that it would melt in his hands.

 _Are these…my thoughts?_

' _Are these…my thoughts?'_

Max grabbed the snowflake and waved his arm, watching the roaring winds sweep it away. That confirmed it, if that was his voice, and if Neo's suggestion worked…then.

' _This is my soul.'_

The boy peered through the flowing snow with no effort and began to walk forward, _'Might as well look around.'_

He walked through the valley for what felt like hours, staring down at the ground, where random memories played out in front of him. Some were funny to look at, like his kid self stealing the neighbors' dog. some were nostalgic, like watching himself step on bugs at school during recess. Some were agitating, like his first conversation with Tanuki.

"I wonder where that bastard is right no-Oof."

Max felt himself bump into some kind of invisible wall that made his skin tingle on contact. He pushed himself away from it and looked forward. There was no wall, only a small glowing orb at his feet.

Max looked at the orb curiously. It was absolutely beautiful. Energy circled inside hypnotically, only held back by a cracked ball of ice. Energy bled through the cracks in stings, forming ornate, jagged shapes in the surrounding air. The boy hesitantly reached for one of them, drawn to it like a moth to a flame.

His hand grazed it, causing a gargantuan wave of power to burst from within. It was strong enough to send Max flying into the air, dazed and confused. He flew back so far and so fast that the valley became nothing more than a speck in his vision in mere seconds.

Max's hearing faded soon after, then his vision, thrusting him into complete darkness, yet he still felt himself flying. Where to? Well, he would soon find out.

* * *

The boy was on his back once again, this time in the real world. He felt something blunt repeatedly poking at his face and swatted it away. His vision returned to the sight of Neo holding Hush with a curious expression.

She pulled out her scroll and after some quick typing showed it to Max, _"Huh, so you're not dead. Neat."_

Max ran a hand across his face and got to his feet, "How long was I out?" the silver-haired faunus asked.

" _Three hours. You were meditating for a few minutes and fell over all of a sudden."_ The girl examined Max, most particularly the faraway look in his eyes, and silently gasped. Her fingers flew across the scroll which she soon presented to the boy, _"Did you find your soulscape that quickly!?"_

Max put a hand on his chin, "So that's what it's called…" he said under his breath. He looked at Neo and scratched his neck.

"Yeah…I guess I did."

* * *

 **With Roman**

The tall man stood over Maverick, who was pressed against a large microscope. "What's the sitch, Doc?" he asked.

Maverick bristled slightly, "I keep telling you, I'm not a bloody doctor! I'm an engineer with a degree in biology! There's a difference you stupid pecker!"

"Whatever Doc. Just tell me what that green-headed moron shoved in himself."

Maverick sighed and grabbed his notes. "This "wonder drug" you gave me has some pretty gobsmacking effects. It's some kind of advanced steroid. The few ingredients I could recognize are usually found in muscle stimulants, pain inhibitors, and rare types of neural accelerators. A single milliliter dose of it rapidly enlarges muscle mass by a factor of one point eight seven two. Less so on muscles that are already rather dense."

"Damn, this stuff is crazy. I'm almost tempted to try some."

"I wouldn't recommend it Torchwick." Maverick shufled through his notes. "Sixty percent of this dammed drug is composed of hundreds of unknown compounds and elements, in addition to several chemical combinations thought to be impossible by modern science.

Roman laughed, "Relax Doc," "I'm NOT a doctor!" "Did you see how fugly that guy looked when he took this crap? You won't catch me looking like that in a million years!"

"That's good. Because there's something…disturbing I uncovered during my research. The drug induces a state of permanent psychosis and heavily stimulates the parts of the mind associated the anger, seemingly on purpose." he shuffled through his notes

Maverick looked down, "I've also noticed the unusual emergence of quote-unquote bone spokes when higher doses of the drug are introduced into the bloodstream, but I have yet to find the cause…" he looked disappointed with himself.

Roman tipped his hat at the young scientist and walked away, "Thank for the info Maverick. You can leave the rest of the investigation to me."

"Sir?" Maverick turned around to Roman curiously.

"I have a hunch. A hunch that could end this whole city if the right people get involved," the man lit a cigar and took a quick puff, "For once in my life, I really hope I'm wrong."

With that, Roman exited the lab, leaving Maverick in stunned silence. The orangette frowned and took a deep drag of his cigar.

' _Things are gonna get real crazy real fast. And I don't know if those brats can handle it. I don't really know if_ _ **I**_ _can handle it either.'_

* * *

 _ **Maxy Chibi**_

 _ **When you get cucked by a Faunus so you destroy the moon**_

 _Max stood over the defeated body of Gary, "Hey Gary."_

" _Yeah?"_

" _I had sex with your wife."_

" _What!?"_

" _Yeah," Max turned around, his swishy jacket swishing through the air swishily, "I pissed on you're wife. She's mine now, that's the law."_

" _What the Fuc-"_

 _ **THREE DAYS LATER**_

 _The Torchlight squad, sans Roman, sat at the table happily eating dinosaur chicken nuggets._

" _Guys, you gotta see this!" Roman said as he barged in the room. The squad reluctantly obliged and left their dinosaur nuggies on the table._

" _Look at the TV!" demanded Roman._

 _It was Gary, in the middle of a newsroom holding a detonator in one hand, and a walnut in the other. The watermark of was at the bottom of the screen._

" _I've come to make an announcement," he began, "Maxwell Argentum's a bitch-ass motherfucker! He pissed on my fucking wife! That's right, he took his wolfy fuckin' furry dick out and he pissed on my FUCKING wife, and he said his dick was "_ _ **this big**_ _" and I said that's disgusting! So I'm making a callout post on my Chirper dot com!"_

 _Maverick turned to Max, "Do you actually have fur on your pecker?"_

" _NO!"_

 _Satisfied, the squad turned back to the screen._

" _Maxwell Argentum, you got a small dick! It's the size of this walnut except_ _ **WAY**_ _smaller. And guess what? Here's what my dong looks like!"_

 _Explosion noises popped up, and all of a sudden the camera panned to a large space station, with a rather…suggestive attachment on it._

" _Is that a giant-" Melanie began._

" _Yes sister, that is indeed a giant space penis," said Milita plainly, despite the horror on her face._

" _That's right, baby. Tall points, no fur, no pillows! Look at that, it looks like two balls and a bong!" Gary pressed the detonator and the giant space penis split open, revealing it to be a giant laser dick, "He fucked my wife, so guess what, I'm gonna fuck the planet! That's right, this is what you get! My SUPER LASER PISS!"_

 _A new camera, placed in Vale, showed a yellow beam of_ _light_ _piss soaring across the sky, simultaneously scaring and disgusting the populous._

 _Gary laughed maniacally, "Except I'm not gonna piss on Remnant! I'm gonna go higher. I'm pissing on the MOOOON!" Indeed the giant stream of piss impacted the moon, making the already shattered moon even_ _ **more**_ _shattered._

" _How do you like that, OZPIN? I PISSED ON THE MOON, YOU IDIOT! You have twenty-three hours before the piss **droplet**_ _ **s**_ _hit the fucking planet, now get out of my fucking sight before I piss on you too!" The channel cut off and the squad stood in silence._

 _Almost everyone in the room turned to Max, who stumbled backward. He pointed at them indignantly. "You're blaming this on me! I call bullshit!"_

" _Get him."_

" _NOOO! AUUGH!"_

 **Inspired by the Sonic Adventure 2 Real-Time Fandub.**


End file.
